Seeing is Believing
by Vedra42
Summary: Sequel to Discretion is the Better part of Valor. A regular week at work for members at the SGC. Hermione's personal and professional life once again collide. Let the fun begin.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I own nothing of Harry Potter who is the property of the great JK Rowling or the Stargate world which belong to MGM, Scifi, and the creators Jonathan Glassner and Brad Wright. Dialogue is barrowed from episode 'Acension.'

A/N: This goes AU during the Final Battle and references are made to the first four stories in this series. I have previously posted this story on Granger Enchanted, but stopped at chapter twelve because of beta problems. I have a new beta who is helping to get me back on track and is looking over ch. 13 now. I will post a chapter a day until I am caught up, after which updates will not be as quick to come.

Chapter 1 Monday, part 1

Monday 10:23am Relative Mountain Time for Earth

Tendrils of hair that had escaped their confines plastered themselves to her neck as they met the sweaty skin that had been exposed and caused a persistent itch to make itself known. Breathing in the hot dry air, Hermione ignored the discomfort of her crouched position and tried to still her movements as the sounds of footsteps grew nearer.

Peering around the rocks they were hidden behind, Hermione watched as a small party of Jaffa marched by in pursuit of their wayward prey. Kurtis, who was pressed against her in the limited space, gave the signal and the group slowly began to move forward. Keeping a firm grip on her P90, Hermione reached behind her, grabbing the hand of a young boy of about five, and helped him down the incline as the rest of the escapees followed.

Keeping their pace steady, Scott took the lead, casting about a wary eye for more patrols as they worked their way back to the Gate. Her nerves, already on edge from trying to keep an eye on both her surroundings and on the group of kids they had rescued, became even more frayed at their slow progress. The group consisted of twelve Jaffa children from ages two to fourteen: the oldest was Kar'yn, who had proved to be a tremendous help in keeping the others in line.

They continued to cut a path through the woods as the heat of the sun beat down on them, causing Hermione to become drenched in sweat and the hands gripping her weapon to slip. The tension was thick as more time passed, and the group finally found themselves closing in on the Gate's position.

There was a unit of Jaffa guarding the ring. Coming to a halt, SG-11 drew together in a whispered discussion to plot a course of action. They couldn't risk waiting for their check-in time to pass and wait for the SGC to send back-up, not with this many Jaffa in the area. Their best chance was to take the risk while only a small guard was stationed at the gate, and fight their way to it. Scott outlined some basic ideas in the dirt, but it looked like it would basically be a firefight the whole way. "Hermione, you get those kids organized. We are going to have to make a break for it and they are going to have to keep up."

"I got it." Charged with her duty, Hermione set about explaining the situation to the kids. Most were still too shocked by their situation that they didn't react to her news; a couple of the younger ones, however, began to cry.

Before they really got going, Kar'yn spoke in a motherly tone, cutting off their tears. "Shhhh, shhhh, everything will be alright. You are Jaffa and will be brave. You will stand tall and you will face our enemy and you will not show fear."

The words seemed to work and the kids quieted and Hermione addressed the girl. "Thank you."

Kar'yn inclined her head in acceptance before once more turning her focus back onto her charges. All the kids looked to her as their leader and Hermione knew that the young woman took that role very seriously.

_The MALP hadn't shown anything in the general vicinity of the gate before SG-11 arrived on the planet and began their survey of the area. Hermione took some routine soil samples, but otherwise didn't spot anything of interest. The team made the decision to follow a well worn path into the woods to see if there was a village in the area, especially after spotting the fresh footprints in the dirt. _

_They could hear the clattering of armor before catching sight of the first Jaffa standing guard outside of a camp. After swiftly taking cover in the brush, everyone held their breath and waited, hoping they hadn't been seen. _

_No alarm was sounded. _

_Scott made a series of hand gestures to everyone, directing them to keep low and move in for a closer look. Kurtis and Kyle took off to flank the camp while Hermione and Scott made their way up an embankment to get a clearer view of the terrain below. _

_The camp was obviously not a permanent residence: the shelters were temporary and it was just not large enough to be a true Jaffa village. It basically looked like a military training camp for some Goa'uld's army. The strange part was that there appeared to be a large number of children amongst the men and no women in sight. As she watched, Hermione saw a young girl bring a platter of food to one of the men. Jerking the plate from her grasp, the Jaffa backhanded the girl, who fell to the ground and cowered away. An older girl swept in to the child's aid and got her out of the way as the Jaffa who had assaulted the girl laughed. He said something to the older girl which Hermione couldn't make out from the distance she was at, but she clearly understood his next move when he grabbed the girl in a vulgar manner while she struggled away._

_It wasn't until Scott seized her arm that Hermione realized she had tensed up, preparing to charge in and stop the Jaffa. With a sharp shake of his head, he pulled her away from the scene. Holding in her outrage for the moment, she followed, not wanting to cause a disturbance. _

_Clicking his radio, Scott called Kyle and Kurtis. "Blake, come in. What's your position?" _

_"We are about 50 meters from the southernmost tent. They appear to be using it as a base of operations," came the cracked reply. _

_Scott was silent for a moment, obviously coming to a decision as he stared into Hermione's pleading eyes before pressing the button on his radio to respond. "Keep covered, but try to get closer. I want to know what's going on in that camp."_

_"Yes, sir." _

_The waiting was difficult. Hermione knew that, logically, there was very little that they could do but bid their time and see what the others discovered. Keeping a lookout on the camp, they both studied the movements of the inhabitants while their teammates scouted the area. The sheer amount of children present boggled her mind. _

_Something was very wrong here._

_In the short time she had been working at the SGC, Hermione had learned a lot about Jaffa culture from both Daniel and Teal'c. Children were prized and fiercely protected; they were never treated so callously or brought into a potentially dangerous situation like this. What had made this group bring them here? _

_Kurtis's voice sounded over the radio. "Sir, they are in a holding pattern for the moment. We got close enough to hear their conversation and it seems they are waiting for another group to arrive through the gate, bringing more captives. The kids are being held all have different symbols than the rest of the Jaffa at the camp."_

_With a furrowed brow, Scott sent back a reply. "Circle back and meet up with us up on the embankment."_

_"Understood." _

_Receiving confirmation Scott turned his focus back to the young woman. "What is your opinion here, Granger? What the hell is going on?"_

_"I'm not sure. This is very atypical behavior for Jaffa. Children are prized and protected; I have no idea what has caused this group to deviate from the norm. I would like to see the symbols the others were able to catch a glimpse of; it will help me to narrow down what Goa'uld they are in service to." It was the best she could offer without more information. Not sure how to phrase her request, she proceeded cautiously. "Sir, they are just children; is there any way we could-" _

_He shook his head, ignoring her. "Lewis and Blake will be here shortly."_

_Dropping the subject for the moment, Hermione let herself mentally review what they had learned so far, but kept drawing a blank. The shifting of the brush caught the pair's attention as the rest of her teammates joined them at their vantage point. _

_Once they were settled, Scott ordered, "Blake, draw some of the symbols for us in the dirt." _

_He used his finger, and Hermione watched the symbols take shape as he explained. "The first is the one all the guards are sporting, the rest are what we saw on various kids." He locked eyes with her, and Hermione could see the confusion displayed in their depths, looking to her for an answer. "I thought Jaffa who serviced different Goa'uld didn't associate with each other unless a new system lord claimed another's territory."_

_"I don't have an explanation for you; I am just as confused by this situation as you are," Hermione answered with a frown. Refocusing on the symbols that Kurtis had laid out for her, she continued. "This, the first one, is the mark of Nut. In Egyptian mythology, she was the goddess of the sky and heavens and protector of the dead. She was also the mother of Osiris, apparently a very devoted one by all accounts. The other symbols Moloch, Apophis, Nerti and a few others I'm not sure of." _

_An uneasy silence fell at her words since everyone was familiar with the story of Osiris and her involvement with the Goa'uld. It was how she had come to the attention of the SGC, when Daniel had visited his old alum matter and discovered evidence of a Goa'uld getting loose from an artifact. Osiris had taken control of her colleague Sarah and escaped. _

_Scott proceeded to put Hermione on the spot again with another question. "Can you think of any explanation for this gathering, Granger?"_

_Shaking her head in the negative, she responded, "I have no idea."_

_He gave her one last searching look before making his announcement. "Let's head back to the Gate before the next group arrives, or they remember to post a guard."_

_Her objection was immediate. "But, Scott, can't we-" _

_"It's too dangerous. We don't know enough about the situation and we don't even have enough people to mount a rescue operation. Our priority is to get back to the Gate without being caught and before our check-in has passed. The last thing we need is the SGC sending in back-up and alerting the Jaffa to our presence when we can still slip away undetected," Scott said, breaking into her objection. _

_Not listening to his reasoning, despite knowing he had a point, Hermione pressed on. "That is just wrong. Something is obviously not right down there and we can't just sit by and do nothing." _

_"She has a point, sir," piped in the previously silent Kyle. _

_"No. I've made my decision; we are heading back to the Gate. If Hammond decides it is worth the risk, we can come back; but until then, move out," commanded Scott, keeping his gaze fixed on Hermione. _

_Not willing to back down, she opened her mouth to try again, when a sudden disturbance in the woods nearby drew all of their attention. A Jaffa stepped into view and caught sight of them bringing his staff weapon forward preparing to fire. Dodging out of the way of the blast Kyle and Kurtis opened a hail of their own fire onto the guard, dropping him in less than a second. Not waiting for the rest of the camp below to react to the sounds, they took off into the trees. _

_Several blasts followed them and they returned the fire before losing the other guards that had been in the vicinity. Taking cover in a dry ravine, they waited for further pursuit, which never came. _

_As time ticked by, they cautiously followed Scott's lead, circling back around the camp toward the direction of the Gate, which they had been fleeing further from. As they got closer, the noise level increased with sounds of staff blasts and crying, and the smell of smoke was in the air. _

_Picking up their pace, they were met by the sight of several children crouching in the brush, hiding. At their approach the kids started trying to make a break for it, but Hermione and the others managed to corral them before they got away. While the men continued to scout the area Hermione was left to strive to calm the group and speak to them, hoping to find out what had happened. What she got were fearful murmurs as the kids clung to each other, clearly frightened by her. _

_The guards were still investigating when she heard the slapping of bare feet hitting the ground running toward her position. Placing herself in front of the others she took a stand as the girl who she had seen stop the Jaffa from attacking her friend earlier, ran from another Jaffa guard. Waiting for the opportune moment she squeezed the trigger and watch as the bullets slammed into the man, stopping him in his tracks. _

_Rushing toward the girl who had fallen to the ground and had thrown her hands up, probably as protection against the loud sound of gunfire, and tried to help her up, but was rebuked. Hermione relaxed her hold on the P90 and let it hang by its strap hoping to reassure the girl, but she continued to edge away. Struggling to get the girl to cooperate in hurried Goa'uld and join the others proved to be a challenge until another Jaffa came charging onto the scene. _

_Pushing the girl out of the way, Hermione didn't have time to aim before the Jaffa was upon her using his staff as a club. She didn't know why he wasn't blasting at her, but she used the good luck and slipped into a modified fighting stance. _

_She side-stepped the blow, allowing the momentum of the attack to unbalance her opponent, and delivered a swift kick to the back of his knee as he passed by. He stumbled at her strike, but quickly recovered and swung his staff around. It caught her in the side and she fell, letting her body roll away to lessen the impact. Struggling to stand, she avoided another swing by twisting out of the way, and went on the offensive. Gripping the staff as it once again came her way, she forced his arms up. She stepped inside his defenses to ram her foot into his stomach; Teal'c had always told her it was a sensitive point for any Jaffa. The blow bent him over and she used all her strength to push him back, maintaining his grip on the staff forcing him to his knees. He didn't break his hold on the weapon like she had hoped and shifted his weight to the side, letting her be pulled off balance, and swiped her foot out from under her. _

_The blow sent Hermione crashing to the ground next to the Jaffa, but before he could strike her again, the girl that had previously been forgotten surprised him by lunging at his back. Thrown off guard, he still managed to knock her away, but Hermione used the distraction to get a hold of her sidearm, which was strapped to her thigh, and fired. _

_Keeping an eye on the body, Hermione struggled to stand while maintaining her aim despite the fact that at point blank range it was very unlikely he hadn't sustained critical damage. Gritting her teeth as her ankle almost gave out, she turned her attention back to the young girl who was staring at her. _

_The silence stretched as the two studied each other before a commotion from the woods drew their attention. She breathed a sigh of relief when it turned out to be nothing more that her team running back after hearing her weapon go off. Scott was quick to inform her of what they had learned as Kurtis helped her with some field medicine to brace her ankle. "It looks like several tents suddenly caught fire, throwing everyone into confusion. There are still some Jaffa trying to put out the fires, but the kids, I am going to assume, all took off at once, causing most to pursue them further, splitting their focus, since some had already gone after us."_

_The girl chose that moment to speak up. "We had planned to burn them when most were asleep and use the chappai to return to our home worlds. The sound of fighting caused many to leave camp and I chose to not wait."_

_"Is everyone here?" questioned Scott studying the group. _

_The girl had already edged toward the rest of the kids and taken up a protective stance in front of them. "Everyone is here."_

_Nodding, Scott continued on. "Great. We need to use this confusion and make our way to the Gate. Lewis, you take point. Blake, cover our retreat. Granger, can you walk?" _

_Standing, she tested the ankle and frowned at the twinge of pain that action caused. "Not fast enough." _

_Scott looked at Kurtis and revised his earlier order. "Blake, help her; I'll take the rear." Redirecting his focus onto the group of kids he resumed giving directives. "Follow the lead and stay together."_

_"Why should we?" questioned the same girl who obviously was the leader of the escapees. The question wasn't directed at the Lt. Colonel, but at Hermione who she hadn't once broken her examination of since the others had arrived. _

_Looking the girl in the eye Hermione answered. "We can help you." The girl still wasn't moving and she added with a pleading tone, extending her hand, "Trust me." Everyone stood silent for a moment waiting. Hermione felt like a bug under a microscope as the girl scrutinized her before taking her hand. _

_As they began their trek through the woods, the girl stayed close to Hermione continuing to study her. Trying to ease the tension for the girl since she hated the feeling of being on display, she spoke. "By the way, since we didn't have a proper introduction, my name is Hermione."_

_The girl sent her one last probing stare before offering a response. "I am Kar'yn."_

They made a stand for it once everyone was in position. While the kids kept hidden, Kurtis, Scott and Kyle began the assault on those guarding the Gate, while Hermione stayed back to provided cover fire. The six Jaffa didn't go down easily and the firefight lasted several minutes before the last one was taken down.

As soon as it was clear Scott began waving her forward yelling at everyone. "Move it people! Come on! Go! Go!"

Limping as quickly as she could, she was joined by Kyle who helped to pick up one of the younger children and run across the clearing for the Gate while Kurtis began dialing. They had to move quickly; the firefight was sure to draw the attention of the patrols in the area and the last thing they needed was to be trapped out in the open.

Before Kurtis could complete the dialing sequence, the Gate activated with a kwoosh, shooting out its vortex of energy, which soon settled into a shimmering surface that resembled a pool of water. Two Jaffa stepped out of the event horizon to be met by a hail of fire by her team as Hermione had all the kids drop low to the ground to avoid any stray fire. Keeping one eye on the fight in front of her, she cast her gaze into the surrounding woods in case a patrol showed up, drawn by the sound.

Two more Jaffa appeared, followed by a troop of kids who scattered at the sight of fighting, the momentary panic helped the Jaffa to be able to make a run for the forest for cover before returning fire. The kids' confusion also succeeded in splitting everyone's attention as more guards walked through the Gate and were able to get out of the direct line of fire, making a break for the trees as well before the Gate shut down.

Minutes ticked by as the fighting continued with them being pinned down by the two groups in the woods, neither side stopping, before Kurtis used his position behind the dialing device to once again punch in Earth's address. This time it worked, reactivating the Gate and encouraged SG-11 to further press their opponents, resulting in three Jaffa being taken out shortly thereafter. The lighter resistance allowed Kyle and Hermione the chance to begin directing the kids to the Gate once they sent their code through so that the iris would not be closed on them.

Kurtis and Scott took an effort to cover their retreat with more fire while Kyle took the first batch through to give the control room some warning. The remaining kids that had arrived with the Jaffa guard didn't know what to do, so Hermione rallied Kar'yn to help her herd them along. "We don't have much time I need you to help me get control of everyone who is left and get them through the Gate before more troops arrive."

Kar'yn broke away to do just that, grabbing a hold of a couple kids cowering on the ground and shoving them toward the Gate. Hermione did the same yelling out orders all the way. "Get to the Gate. Hurry! Faster, faster!"

It took longer than she would have hoped, but eventually everyone was sent through and Hermione was able to fire off a few shots while Scott and Kurtis made a retreat. Taking the hand of Kar'yn who had stayed with her, Hermione let herself step into the event horizon after making sure her teammates were following.

The landing in the control room was a little jarring as she adjusted to the new surroundings; beside her, Kar'yn stiffened at the strange environment. Most of the Marines stationed in the control room had been pushed back by the onslaught of refugees pouring through the Gate, but were still in a position to defend against an attack. Tightening her hold on the girl, she quickly guided her down the ramp to make room for the last arrivals. Spotting Kyle's questioning look, she spoke addressing everyone, "They are right behind me, coming in hot."

A few tense seconds passed before Kurtis came rolling through the Gate followed by Scott stumbling backwards with his weapon still directed at an unseen enemy shouting. "Close the iris!"

The titanium alloy metal slid into position across the Gate, hiding the shimmering surface from sight. Several thuds struck the shield before the Gate cut off.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2 Monday, part 2

Kar'yn had never seen a place quite like this before. The gray walls and long hallways were bare of any adornment except for the occasional sign marking a door. It was unlike any of the Goa'uld palaces her father had described to her when she was younger. Most of her life had been spent in her village helping her mother with the daily chores and watching her younger brother train with the other boys to learn to one day become a warrior in service to the Gods.

A calling that was denied to her as a female.

She had never known her life could be different, not until she heard the rumors. Warriors back from battle would whisper around the campfire, tales of Jaffa who fought against the Gods, claiming their powers were false and that they had been lied to. She didn't know what to think of those tales, but there were other rumors which she found far more interesting.

The tale of a fierce woman Jaffa who fought against their Lord Moloch, known for his harsh treatment of all the female Jaffa on his worlds, caught her attention. The thought that she could possibly be something more, somehow able to help all of her fellow sisters, took root within her. She wanted to be able to fight back. She kept her dream a secret and planned her escape.

That had all ended when they had arrived.

The enemy Jaffa had arrived at night without anyone knowing, stealing into their tent and slitting the throats of her sleeping family before carrying her off without any warning. Slung over the shoulders of a Jaffa she later learned was named Me'pta, she watched her family tent catch flame in the distance, burning any evidence of her abduction and any hope of a rescue.

She was carried, bound and gagged, toward the chappa'ai where her abductor met up with more of the unfamiliar Jaffa also returning from the village possessing their own captives. One of the figures which had been standing guard at the ring stepped forward entering an address to open the portal. The light of the watery surface cast an eerie glow on the area, providing her with one last look at her home for the past fourteen years.

The next few weeks had Kar'yn journeying from one world to the next with her captors as they continued to move their camp in an effort to hide their activities. The group of captives continued to grow as more of the men came back from missions to other worlds, bringing their own hostages. Being the oldest, she stepped into the role of leader of the younger children and helped protect them from any abuse from the guards. The men forced them to perform the chores of the camp and, at times, would become violent if mistakes were made. By far the worst was Me'pta, who liked to bully them, and whose eyes followed Kar'yn in a way which made her very uncomfortable.

No one was told what was happening, but Kar'yn and the others managed to learn through eavesdropping that they served Nut, and their mission was to collect as many children as possible to bring back to their home world. Apparently a rival Goa'uld, Nerti, had used one of her experiments to eradicate the ability of the Jaffa serving Nut to have children. The problem had proved to have no solution, and in recent years it had become a priority for them to steal a new generation to keep up their numbers. The Jaffa were sent in secret so as not to let this very dangerous knowledge become widespread amongst any of Nut's enemies.

She watched, listened and planned.

If these Jaffa succeeded in bringing them to their home world, she knew that the chances of her ever being able to escape, her chance to be something beyond a brood mare, would be gone. Talking to the other children who were also against the idea of being taken away from everything they knew and who wanted revenge against their family's butchers, they began to devise escape plans. Plans they put into action when the strangers had arrived.

Following the lead of Hermione and the rest of the men who had helped to rescue them from their captors, Kar'yn soon found herself walking into a large room for her required check-up. Still not quite trusting this new situation she kept her guard up and carefully monitored the actions of those around her. It wasn't until she saw Hermione being helped onto one of the exam tables to have her ankle looked over that Kar'yn allowed herself to be taken over to the examination area.

Sitting on the edge of one of the exam tables, she was joined by the other rescued children, and took the hand of the youngest, Thep, who was showing alarm at their new surroundings.

What followed was a quick assessment for injuries performed by several of the medical staff. She was able to receive bandages for the minor cuts she had gained on the soles of her feet during her flight through the brush and the others were treated as well. Once the exam was finished she watched as the lady doctor who seemed to be in charge approached a group composed of the woman Hermione, the rest of the rescue team and an older man she had not previously met. Being careful not to be seen she edged closer to hear what was being discussed.

"How are they, Dr. Fraiser?" inquired the older man.

The lady doctor, Fraiser, spoke. "A few bumps and bruises seems to be the extent of it, but what disturbs me, sir, is that not all of the injuries seem to be from their escape. Some display signs of having previous injuries that have already begun to heal."

"We witnessed one of the Jaffa at the camp strike one of the girls. It is likely that it wasn't an isolated incident," was Hermione's observation.

From her position, Kar'yn could see that the woman had her ankle wrapped up and had a pair of crutches leaning off to the side of the exam table she was perched on waiting to be used.

"That would account for the injuries they exhibit, sir," agreed Dr. Fraiser, directing her statement toward the older man, who Ka'ryn assumed was probably their leader.

"Is there anything else, doctor?" asked the man.

"The whole group appears to be dehydrated and malnourished, but nothing that a few square meals won't be able to fix," the doctor continued to report.

The man, the possible leader, reassured the woman. "I'm sure that the cafeteria staff will be able to help you with that, Dr. Fraiser. At the moment, I am going to try and contact Master Bra'tac to see if he will be able to led us some help with the refugees."

A new voice she recognized as belonging to the man who she had spoken to back on that other world joined the conversation. "Ah, sir. Perhaps we should first find some place for all of them to stay and figure out what to do with them later. They're all petty shaken up at the moment; it might not be the best to try and shuffle them off so soon."

"I agree, General. These children have already gone through enough. A meal and a good night's sleep will be greatly beneficial," pronounced Dr. Fraiser.

The General again spoke. "Alright, doctor. Have your staff start working on the arrangements. The rest of you are to report for a debriefing as soon everyone has been cleared."

Fraiser spoke. "They are free to go now, sir."

The shifting of clothes followed the doctor's announcement as Hermione and her team stood to leave. Glancing over her shoulder Kar'yn met the gaze of one of the men who sent her a wink before speaking to the General. "Sir. It might be a good idea to bring along one of the kids to hear their side of things."

"Do you think any will be willing to speak to us, Captain?" questioned the man.

Again he sent her a wink before addressing his leader. "I know just the one." Waving her over, he asked, "So how 'bout it, kid?"

Stepping forward, Kar'yn found herself the focus of the group's stares before speaking. "I would like to come."

Nodding his head the General spoke. "Very well."

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

_Thwack. _

_Thwack...thwack...thwack, clack. _

_Swish. _

_Thwack...thwack...Crack. _

"Uhhgh," came the groan from the Marine who was bent over after a failed strike left him open to a blow to his stomach with a staff.

Stopping the attack on his opponent, Teal'c waited for the man to recover before resuming his fighting position. For the last hour, he had been conducting a training session for several Marines on the base and was now sparring with them individually.

Recovered, his opponent settled into a fighting stance and they began to circle each other again.

After a moment the Marine jabbed forward with his staff, but Teal'c blocked him and the dull thwack of the wooden staffs meeting echoed through the room. The sounds of wood meeting wood, the swish as an attack being dodged and the crack of a weapon hitting the floor once more permeated the room.

Once more, as his opponent over-extended his attack, Teal'c delivered a blow to his stomach, but this time followed it with a twist of his staff, knocking the Marine's weapon out of his hands.

"You have done well today, Sergeant Mather," he said while extending his hand to help the man up.

"Thank you, Teal'c. Same time next week?" asked the Marine.

"Indeed."

With the class at an end, the rest of the participating men drifted away to resume their normal daily routines. As Teal'c cleaned up, he put away the training staffs. An airman entered the room and approached him. Standing at attention, the officer spoke. "The General has requested your presence for a meeting in the main conference room."

Inclining his head in acknowledgment of the summons, Teal'c strode out of the training room and headed toward the lifts. Entering the main conference room, he was met by the sight of SG-11 and an unknown Jaffa girl seated at the table waiting.

Receiving a slight nod at his entrance, he caught the eye of the General and raised his brow in a silent question. "Have a seat, Teal'c." As he did so, the General continued to speak. "I've called you here for SG-11's debriefing. They seem to have encountered a Jaffa camp on their exploration of PX5-726 and were able to rescue a large group of captured children being held against their will."

Once he had clarified the objective of the meeting, General Hammond allowed the discussion to proceed. Teal'c listened to the recounting of the events which took place on the mission while allowing himself to study the Jaffa girl sitting across from him. Since he had stepped into the room she had not moved her gaze from his and, feeling the scrutiny, he had taken to returning the gesture.

The girl was young still, but held a strength that could rival any full grown warrior he had seen. She was clearly laying claim to those who she considered under her care and was warning him away from them, recognizing him as the dominant threat present to them on the base. He had knowledge about them that the girl might not want to become known. He was a Jaffa and thought like a Jaffa.

"...All the guards had the symbol of Nut displayed on their foreheads," explained HermioneGranger, who had recounted much of the events that had transpired.

Breaking his silence for the first time, Teal'c spoke, turning his attention away from the glaring girl. "I have heard of the Goa'uld Nut. At one time she commanded a force to rival that of Apophis; many worlds lay under her control. It was rumored that she had been working to form an alliance of several System Lords to take on the might of Ra before he was defeated then his successor Apophis. The idea was to take on one Goa'uld at a time until only they were left and could divide the Empire evenly."

"What happened?" asked Lieutenant Lewis.

Teal'c elaborated. "The alliance was barely formed before her allies turned on her. Nut's forces were almost decimated and Apophis had her hunted from world to world. For years little was known about her activities until she once again slowly began to amass power. Then nothing; her forces just stopped their activities."

The General gave him a searching look. "Do you have any idea why that might be?"

"I do not," was his reply.

"She no longer had the ability to send out Jaffa for conquest," informed the girl who had stopped glaring at him and instead addressed the General.

"Please explain, Kar'yn," the General asked.

Sitting up in her chair at the attention, the girl Kar'yn spoke. "The Jaffa who held us would often talk amongst themselves of the troubles that led to their current course of actions. The constant conflict between Nut and the Goa'uld Nerti resulted in a plague being released on their world. One of Nerti's experiments made it so all of the Jaffa who served Nut could no long have children."

"And without children, she could have no way to resupply her army with new soldiers," reasoned Captain Kurtis.

Kar'yn inclined her head in agreement. "Much time was spent to try and find a cure, but with no success. Before yet another generation could be lost, Nut ordered patrols of her Jaffa to secretly steal children from enemy Goa'uld territories. We are far from the first group she has acquired."

"How could something like this been kept secret? Surely someone would have noticed the disappearance of children from a multitude of Jaffa camps and noticed a pattern?" questioned HermioneGranger, looking at both Kurtis and Kar'yn for an answer.

Teal'c was intrigued to see that Kar'yn did not bristle at the question like he would expect of the girl. She was very proud and he did not expect her to take the questioning of her honor well, but she showed surprising restraint. Instead she turned toward the doctor and allowed her mask to drop a little to show a shadow of emotion.

"The Jaffa that came to my village under the cover of darkness killed my family before setting fire to the tent. I do not believe they would allow any evidence that I or the other captives remained alive to become known."

Everyone was silent as they pondered the news the girl had imparted. Thinking of just how many children could have been stolen in such a manner, Teal'c spoke. "Was there ever any discussion of the address to Nut's home world?"

Once again the focus of her gaze, he allowed the girl a moment before she answered. "We were taken from camp to camp to avoid detection, and were never told our final destination."

He knew that it was unlikely that she had known, but so far she had proven herself to be quite knowledgeable and he had felt the need to ask.

Showing that he had been exploring the same avenue of thought, General Hammond gave voice to his own sentiment. "We don't have sufficient intel to plan a rescue mission at this time. Teal'c, I want you contact Master Bra'tac to see if he can help arrange homes for our guests and if he can use the resources of the Free Jaffa to find out more about Nut's activities." At the obvious displeasure displayed on Hermione Granger's face, the General continued. "I would be happy to plan a rescue mission at a later date if more intelligence can be obtained, but until that time, let's do our best for those already under our care." She reluctantly gave a nod of consent.

"Why should we trust the Free Jaffa? Don't we have a right to choose our own fate?" demanded Kar'yn, startling the others at the table with her harsh tone.

Knowing the reason for her hostility, Teal'c answered. "You are not being forced. Master Bra'tac is an honorable warrior and the Free Jaffa will be able to find families to take in the other children."

"I am not a child," stated the girl.

Studying Kar'yn, he inclined his head in agreement. "No you are not, but those under your care are." Teal'c could see that his words had won her over a little, but she was still not willing to be placed in another situation with an unknown party.

Relaxing her hostile glare marginally, she voiced another challenge. "I will not be regaled to women's work. I am Jaffa."

He didn't disagree that the girl would make a fine warrior, but despite her courage, she did not have the training and skill to be one yet. First she would have to learn this lesson, and so, instead of agreeing right away to her claim, Teal'c let the silence of the room stretch before speaking. "The Free Jaffa accept anyone with the skills to fight."

Not fazed at the implied slight to her capabilities, she just inclined her head at the underlying acceptance of her offer.

With the discussion at an end, General Hammond dismissed the occupants of the room to continue on with their tasks. Teal'c watched as Kar'yn waited for Hermione Granger to rise from her seat and balance herself on a pair of crutches that had been hidden under the table before following her lead out of the room. He was very intrigued by the regard the girl displayed toward the doctor. Several times during the meeting he had observed Kar'yn copying the mannerisms that HermioneGranger displayed.

Following the pair out of the room he decided to join them as the doctor hustled the girl toward the lifts murmuring about getting some food.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 Monday, part 3

Monday 2:17pm Mountain Time, Cheyenne Mountain, Colorado

He had been working in his lab when the sound of childish giggling drew his attention to the open door. Confused, Daniel set down the pictures he had been studying just in time to catch a pair of kids run past the entrance to his lab. Pushing back his chair he walked forward and peered out into the hall to find out what was going on. The two boys he had spotted continued to play some form of tag without noticing Daniel's presence. Their ignorance didn't last for long as the smaller one of the two suddenly turned trying to avoid being caught by the other and ran into him at full speed.

Barely avoiding toppling over at the impact, Daniel gripped the edge of the door frame letting out a whoosh of air as the collision into his stomach knocked the wind out of him. Taking some deep breaths he managed to settle himself before focusing in on the boys. Both gave him wary looks as the taller one genteelly guided the other away from him and took a protective stance in front of the boy.

"Uh, who are you two?" Asked Daniel as he slowly began to recover his breath.

Still keeping their distance the taller kid spoke. "We are sorry for harming you. We should be returning to the infirmary."

Shaking his head in disagreement at the kid's words, Daniel attempted to ease their fears in order to get some answers. "No, no. It's alright, I'm fine. My name is Daniel Jackson. I uh, work in this lab here. What are your names?"

There was a moment of silence. "I am Neb and this is Ka'nac," was the answer the same tall kid who had taken upon himself the role of spokesman for the pair gave.

"And you are Jaffa?" inquired Daniel.

Remaining wary, Neb just inclined his head in the affirmative.

Offering a smile to Neb in hopes of easing the boy's worries, Daniel spoke again. "What are you boys doing down here?"

Before Neb could speak Ka'nac stepped out from behind the taller boy to reply. "We're playing Attack of the Re'tu."

Re'tu were an alien species that worked for the Goa'uld as assassins and had the capability to become invisible. SG-1 had encountered one who had infiltrated the base several years ago. Seeing as both the boys had relaxed and were now willing to answer his questions, Daniel asked the one that had been on the tip of his tongue since he had first seen the pair. "That's, uh, nice. Why are you boys here on Earth?" he was careful to clarify.

"SG-11 brought us along with Kar'yn and everyone else," was Neb's explanation.

Before Daniel could puzzle out that statement an airman rounded the corner of the hall and spotted them. He sent Daniel an apologetic smile before turning his attention to the kids who by this time were looking quite sheepish at being caught. "There you two are. Dr. Frasier has had everyone searching for you both." The airman began to hustle the two kids away, but not before using his radio to send a message to the infirmary. "Martin to Frasier. I've found our runaways."

Daniel could just make out Janet's voice over the line. "Oh, good. Bring them back to their beds, Lieutenant."

"Will do, ma'am," replied Lieutenant Martin.

With his curiosity still peaked over the whole situation Daniel decided to investigate further and joined the Lieutenant in frog-marching the kids back through the halls. At the Lieutenant's inquiring look he spoke hoping to find out more about what seemed to be the current dilemma of the base. "Seems like a lot has been going on lately."

Picking up on his hint the Lieutenant began to fill him in. "SG-11 arrived back from their mission with a bunch of captured Jaffa children. They have all been checked out in the infirmary and I believe Teal'c has been tasked with contacting Master Bra'tac to see if the Free Jaffa will take them in."

Entering the infirmary, Daniel was surprised at the sheer number of children he encountered. Janet, spotting their entrance, walked over giving both boys stern looks as she did so. "There you are. Both of you are to go back to your beds this instant and let the nurses get you some food."

"Food?" Came the excited voice of Ka'nac.

Smiling at the boy, Janet nodded. "Yes, food." As the boys were lead away Daniel finally got a chance to quiz Janet on the day's events and was soon roped into helping organize the temporary accommodations for the kids. He had heard the earlier warning for an unscheduled off-world activation, but had been in the middle of a challenge translation and had ignored it, knowing that if it was important someone would find him. About an hour later he was able to escape the confusion of the infirmary to find his way to the cafeteria hoping to grab a late lunch.

As Daniel walked into the room he proceeded toward the serving counter and filled his plate before looking for a place to sit. The room was mostly empty with the large majority of the staff on duty at this time of the day. His decision to sit alone was changed as he caught sight of the small group in the far corner.

Seated at a table was Hermione, Teal'c and an unknown Jaffa girl. They seemed to be in the middle of a conversation when Hermione caught his eye and waved him over to join them.

As he approached the table, Hermione slid down the bench to provide him a space to sit while moving a pair of crutches out of the way. Seeing them, he gave her a concerned look and winced in sympathy after spotting her bandaged foot, knowing quite well the sometimes detrimental effects of going off-world, especially knowing his own luck in encountering them. Over the years he had developed a reputation for his tendency toward concussions and, while he knew Hermione had far better luck then him in avoiding injures, she had still developed a propensity for finding herself in the infirmary since she had joined SG-11.

When he had first found out Jack had recommended she be placed on a team, Daniel had been shocked like everyone else. It had taken him awhile to realize that while Hermione was just as academically driven as the rest of his staff, she was still quite a bit younger than her peers and couldn't be categorized by their lack of athleticism. She was by no means as adept as the military personnel, but she had already proven that she could outstrip anyone else in the scientific departments, bar himself, and even then she was getting close.

In a way it had helped to heighten their already developing friendly rivalry over the months into a bit of a one-man up ship. It was becoming an increasingly common occurrence for them to spend hours debating over historical topics and competing against the other to be the first to master a new language. Despite his frequent frustration with her sometimes stubborn nature, Daniel realized that it was a refreshing change to have someone around who wasn't afraid to tell him he was wrong, and he suspected she felt the same.

"You're alright?" he asked gesturing toward the crutches.

Waving away his concern Hermione answered, "Just a sprain," bringing his attention back to the table she introduced the mystery girl. "Daniel, I would like you to meet Kar'yn. Kar'yn, this is Dr. Daniel Jackson."

"It's nice to meet you," greeted Daniel. The girl only inclined her head in a very Teal'c-like manner.

Hermione brought the discussion back on track and proceeded to give him an explanation of the girl's presence on the base. They mostly made small talk until Hermione took notice of the time and made their excuses before guiding Kar'yn back to the infirmary to find where the others would be staying for the next few days.

Daniel and Teal'c remained seated after the girls left. Picking up a new topic of conversation in an effort to avoid any awkward silence, Dainel asked, "Have you gone over the reports for PX-636?"

"I have reviewed the material the MALP recorded. It seems that the ruins extend a great distance from the Gate," replied Teal'c, referring to the images that had been taken of the planet's surface. They were scheduled to start exploring the planet in the early hours of the coming night.

Because of the distance from the Gate, Daniel had been unable to get a clear idea of what sort of architecture the ruins were comprised of, but he had been able to make some educated guesses about the structures. "I've been studying the images and I think that the ruins must have been part of a rather large technologically advanced civilization. Based on the layout and pattern of the buildings, it was a city of some size, and there appears to be roads leading off to other towns. The planet may have been much like Earth with multiple cities and towns over the entire planet. Before whatever happened to destroy it, they probably had a population in the millions." By the end of his explanation Daniel couldn't hide his excitement over their visit to the mystery world. It was very rare for them to come across a planet which supported more than several thousand people at the most.

Teal'c didn't show much interest in his continued ramblings, and Daniel turned the discussion back to the table's previous occupants. "Why was Kar'yn down here with Hermione and not up with the others in the infirmary?"

"Kar'yn came to the debriefing to discuss the plans of the Jaffa that held them captive," explained Teal'c.

Nodding, he prompted the stoic Jaffa to continue. "And?"

"The Jaffa that serve the Goa'uld Nut can no longer produce children. For many years now she has ordered her Jaffa to seek out a new generation. Several worlds have been visited in stealth and have had children stolen away," explained Teal'c

Daniel frowned in thought. "Wouldn't someone have noticed that the kids were missing?"

"The children that are taken, their families killed, and their homes destroyed by fire to avoid anyone becoming suspicious."

On that ominous note Daniel let the subject drop, no longer having the need to satisfy his curiosity.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Monday 10:41pm London, England

With a sigh of frustration, Harry threw down the quill he had been using, fed up with the pile of paperwork that had accumulated on his desk. Running a hand through his hair, he slumped backward in his chair, taking note of the time.

Damn. It wasn't even halfway through his shift yet.

He hated working nights. He'd much rather be at home with Ginny and James, but since he and the rest of the family were taking off for a week-long vacation starting this Wednesday, his boss had scheduled him for the dreaded graveyard shift. Most of the time, he enjoyed the fact that the Head of Magical Law Enforcement treated him just like any other Ministry employee and not Harry Potter, Defender of the Wizarding World. Then there were times he wished that his celebrity status could help him to get out of some of the mundane tasks that his position held. Back at Hogwarts, Harry had never thought that being an Auror would involve quite this much paperwork or that most of his time would be spent waiting for something to happen.

Standing up, he went to find the coffee pot to get a refill before settling back at his desk. Picking up the next report about an investigation into a missing dangerous shrub, he let out another sigh. At least it wasn't another review concerning the use of underage magic, which flooded his desk during the summer. Ever since he had taken an effort to have every report of underage magic reviewed before a punishment was dealt out, in order to prevent something like what happened the summer before fifth year from ever occurring again, Harry had been forced into the role of lead investigator.

His concentration was soon gripped by the entrance of Auror Diamont who was supposed to be on an undercover assignment. The Auror took no notice of his surroundings as he marched into the backroom where they stored many of the files on open cases. A minute later he emerged clutching a stack of files and let them spill across his desk.

Curious Harry got up and approached his colleague. "What's going on, Jeff?"

At the sound of his voice Jeff jumped, but relaxed after catching sight of him. "Oh, Harry. It's only you...I'm looking over a past case." He opened the folder to show him the wizarding photo of an object being genteelly moved from side to side, displaying a complex pattern of runes. "This is an artifact that we acquired some months ago, the third such item we have come across in this past year. Not much is known about it, and we were only able to perform the most basic of tests before the Unspeakables took hold of it for further study, except that they give off a signature of dark magic. Tonight, while I was undercover at Knockturn Alley, two men were bartering over the sale of one. I placed a charm on the buyer and seller to track them, but first I wanted to double check everything we knew about the artifact before apprehending them."

"What's your game plan?" asked Harry already letting his mind race ahead to possible scenarios.

Jeff began his explanation with his usual hand waving and Harry made sure to duck out of the way of the occasional arm. "I was going to try and pick up the buyer first and bring him in for questioning. See if we can find anything else about the purpose of these artifacts before setting up any sort of raid for the seller."

Nodding along Harry brought up a little overlooked issue. "Ah, what about your partner, Jeff? Shouldn't you have some back up just in case?" He tried to make the inquiry sound casual, but wasn't sure if he succeeded.

Brushing away his concern, Jeff answered, "Higgins is already in position, keeping up the surveillance."

"Oh, that's good." For a moment Harry had hoped to be able to volunteer himself to come along for a little extra muscle. Knowing that the man already had everything taken care of, he wandered back to his desk before making one last offer. "If you need any back-up, just send out an alert."

"Will do," was the distracted reply as the man focused back on the files.

Harry once again sat down at his desk, resigned that he would have to try and get some work done. Slowly his mind began to engage itself on the task and he found he barely noticed when Jeff slipped away some minutes later.

The clock's hourly chime hit midnight, then one, then two.

A commotion broke out toward the entrance as Jeff and his partner, Steven Higgins trudged in covered in some kind of slime, with a body floating behind them which was quickly deposited in an interrogation room.

"What happened to you two?" called out Harry eying their robes.

Steven muttered something unintelligible before shuffling off as Jeff flopped into a chair and began a series of wand movements to clean his robes. Finished, he gave Harry his attention. "We ran into a bit of trouble picking up that guy. Turns out he likes those WWW products." He really tried to suppress his laughter, but Harry couldn't help himself and let a snort escape. Jeff gave him a mock glare. "Hey, you're friends with them, you should know how dangerous their products can be in the wrong hands."

His laughter only increased as flashes of past pranks traveled through his mind. In the aftermath of the Final Battle and Fred's death, Ron had stepped into the role of co-partner of WWW with George. It had been a rocky beginning since both were morning the loss of their brother, but they had survived. Ron had shown to be a deft hand at running the business side of things, while George, the creative. That wasn't to say that Ron hadn't managed to come up with an idea or two: Harry remembered quite fondly the Fickle Ferret Fudge. He just tended to be more at place working with the customers. Fred's death had changed George, and he no longer seemed quite as comfortable keeping a smiling face in front of the masses, so really it was for the best.

Sobering up at that thought Harry gave the now clean Auror a response. "Oh, I know. Anyway what did you find out?"

"Nothing yet," sighed Jeff. "Do you want to sit in on the interrogation?" he offered using his head to point toward the backroom.

Tossing down the paperwork he had been reviewing Harry stood. "Merlin, yes."

The pair were soon joined by Steven as they entered the room, making sure to double check that the prisoner was secure. "Enervate," whispered Steven, awaking the individual from being stunned.

The man wasn't too cooperative, but the three were able to get enough to know that he was only a middle-man and did not know the purpose behind the artifact. Exiting the room and settling back in at his desk, Jeff showed Harry the object in question which they had lifted off the man.

Studying the curved piece of metal, he wondered what its purpose was. "Has anyone been able to translate these runes?"

Shaking his head in the negative, Jeff spoke. "No. I had the few guys in the office who have a background in runes look it over, nothing. They say it's some obscure dialect, but honestly most haven't studied anything beyond the Hogwart's syllabus since it's not exactly required for the Auror exam."

"What about getting someone else to look it over? I would think that we could find someone in the Ministry with a good grasp of runes, if not get a cursebreaker from Gringotts," suggested Harry. He knew that Ancient Runes wasn't one of the most preferred subjects for pupils back at Hogwarts, but he found it hard to believe that no one outside the office had been consulted.

"Normally we get the Unspeakables to help out, but they are being unusually tightlipped. I'm not sure if that is because they have nothing to report or are trying to hide something. They're a weird bunch down there. I'm lucky they even let us keep the photo we have of the first artifact. They will probably be coming to get this one once word has trickled down."

Harry was silent for a moment pondering Jeff's words before an idea came to him. "I might have an idea."

Sending him a speculative look Jeff prompted him to continue. "Go on."

"As you know I'm going on vacation to visit an old friend starting Wednesday. She's quite good at translations and probably wouldn't mind taking a little look at the runes for us," suggested Harry.

Giving him a bit more attention, Jeff asked, "And who might this friend of yours be?"

Warily, "Hermione Granger."

To Harry's amusement Jeff's jaw actually dropped. "T-The Her-Hermione Granger?"

With a smirk he nodded. "Yep."

"Hermione Granger...The witch responsible for wielding the Founder's Magic of Hogwarts. The one who the Ministry falsely went after thinking she could be the next Dark Lord. The first witch in over four hundred years to be stripped of her magic and exiled. The author of _The Inherit Rights of a Magical Citizen_, _An Exploration of Ministry Policy for the Modern World_, and _The Werewolf_. That Hermione Granger?" rambled Jeff, looking a little star struck.

No longer quite so entertained by his coworker's actions, Harry could only murmur a quiet, "The one and the same."

Over the years, and despite her exile, Hermione had become a sort of folk hero to the younger generation. Her exploits during the Final Battle were still talked about with awe at Hogwarts and the papers she had submitted to both international and local newspapers in the months after her initial exile had created quite a stir. Using the style of several Muggle writers, she wrote about personal rights, the government's responsibilities to the public, and the policies of discrimination all magical creatures faced; basically a passive way to challenge her exile.

The tide had begun to turn in her favor, with demonstrations protesting the Ministry's ruling before she had suddenly dropped her case. To this day, she still wouldn't talk of her decision, and it had never sat right with Harry that she would just give up. At the time, she had explained it away saying that even if she could get the verdict overturned, it would take years and she needed to focus her attentions on integrating into the Muggle world. A world that she had explained she felt more comfortable in after going through a war in the other, somewhere she wouldn't be haunted by the past. Harry could understand her feelings knowing that he might have followed her example if things had been different.

Her fans had taken the news less well, believing that some conspiracy of the Ministry's was behind her choice. Others thought she had been able to get around the Ministry taking her magic and was living in England in secret fighting for justice. Using the Muggle model of protest they had started a petition, put up a picket line, had a sit-in at the Ministry atrium and started up an independent free paper to discuss the issues behind her exile. Slowly, the movement had morphed and taken on new causes and campaigns. Everything from Witch's Rights, to Goblins, to House-Elf protections, to Labor Laws, etc.

It was becoming more and more typical to find young adults and students at Hogwarts to be spotted passing around copies of Hermione's papers and other political essays to discuss during a Hogsmeade weekend. Despite not participating in it, Hermione was being hailed as the Mother of the current Civil Rights Movement the Wizarding World was experiencing.

This new political reality had been shaking up the old regime for the last few years and had really heated up this last year alone. As a consequence, the Auror office had been busy for the first real time since Voldemort's reign. They had been tasked with policing protest rallies, looking out for some of the violent extremists that had popped up on both sides of the fence and had even had to change the way they exercised the law when a new set of acts had been passed.

Despite all the good that the Movement had achieved, Harry still harbored a bit of resentment toward the whole situation and the events that led to its inception. He would rather Hermione have been able to enact these changes herself, instead of in her absence.

Breaking him out of his reprieve was Jeff's excited chatter. "Do you really think she would be willing? I didn't know she was good with runes. I-I could get a copy of everything to be paired for you to take."

"Ah, yeah just get everything ready," came Harry's reply.

"Wow. I didn't know that you were going to see her. What is she doing nowadays? Are the rumors true?" said Jeff as began waving his wand to make some copies.

Now regretting his previous suggestion Harry could only try and deflect the man's questions. He didn't want anyone to know where Hermione was currently living. It had been almost a year since he had last seen her and he didn't want anyone to ruin it. Especially since she didn't exactly know the full scale her 'hero status' had taken over the years, with the Weasley's helping him to keep her oblivious. "She's ah, fine. Great, even."

Harry really hoped she wouldn't kill him when she found out.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or Stargate. Dialogue is borrowed from the episode 'Acension.'

Chapter 4 Tuesday, part 1

Tuesday 4:03am Relative Mountain Time for Earth

Stepping over another piece of broken stone, Daniel came to a stop after finally getting a good look at his surroundings. Everything was in ruins, just like the rest of the city that SG-1 had been exploring for the past few hours. They had set out from the SGC at about one in the morning, but because of the time difference on PX-636, it was already midmorning when they arrived. Scanning the area, he focused in on an area which seemed to still be mostly intact and went over to study it. It was a different design than the rest of the ruins and he was intrigued.

Losing himself in the symbols before him, Daniel didn't notice when Jack and Teal'c came up the stairs behind him until Jack spoke. "Sixteen's coming through to set up a UAV." Nodding his head absentmindedly, Daniel continued to focus on his task; he already knew that Jack and Teal'c had gone back to the Gate to send a report back to the SGC.

"It appears the inhabitants of this city lost a great battle and were destroyed long ago. There appear to be no survivors," observed Teal'c.

Daniel had come to much the same conclusion. "That's too bad... I was kinda hoping someone could help me decipher this language." He waved his hand at the wall before him still taking in the characters that adorned it.

"No idea?" questioned Jack.

Sighing he shook his head. "No, it's very odd. This uh..." He motioned to a device off to the side that Sam was studying. "Whatever this is it's a completely different design than the rest of the civilization."

Shrugging, Jack offered a guess. "Maybe it was here when they got here."

"That's assuming the inhabitants were born on this planet." Daniel could see that Jack wasn't interested in his speculation and got to the point he wanted to bring up. "I could probably date its construction with carbon analysis." It was silent for a moment and Daniel let his attention turn back to the ruins and his analysis of them.

"How long?" queried Jack, breaking his focus once again.

Confused by the question he could only stare before he asked. "For what?"

Motioning toward building Jack clarified. "All of it...how...long?"

Looking from wall to Jack then back again, he judged the amount of area they still hadn't searched through. "Ah, well, days...weeks...months... maybe longer. This is very meticulous work and with the amount of wreckage there is, it's not going to be an easy task."

Jack made a face. "In other words, very tedious boring work."

"Yes, Jack," he said with a sigh. The other man ignored his comment, already turning his attention to the other side of the room where Sam was studying the mysterious alien device. Left to his own devices once again, Daniel began to use his camcorder to record the wall's inscriptions to bring back to the base for further study. With half his attention on the screen he listened to the discussion between his teammates.

Standing next to Sam, Jack spoke. "Carter? You have any idea what this is yet?"

"No, sir. The technology is very advanced."

"So, what? Two hours?" guessed Jack. Daniel smiled; having known Sam for as many years as Jack, he knew not to underestimate her intelligence. She constantly surprised everyone with her leaps of brilliance in working out how to use alien technology no matter how seemingly advanced it appeared to be.

"Very advanced," was Sam's terse answer.

Perhaps noticing that she wasn't giving him her full attention, Jack excused himself. "All right. Well, Teal'c and I have secured the immediate area. We're gonna check out the town."

Daniel peered over his should to see Sam toying with the device before murmuring a distracted. "Yes, sir."

Before leaving, Jack gave her a warning. "Don't turn that on." Still distracted with her work Sam's hand moved toward the device hovering above as Jack cried out.

"Ahh!" Sam pulled back startled. "What'd I just say?"

She held her hands up. "I know."

With their little drama at an end Daniel went back to studying the symbols on the walls. Reaching the last section of text, he could barely make out the etchings as they had mostly been worn away. Opening his bag, he took out some paper and a piece of chalk to try and make a rubbing. Successful, he studied the piece of paper momentarily lost in his thoughts.

The language held certain characteristics to early Phoenicia writings, but it seemed to have a different grammatical structure. Rolling up the paper he put it away and continued his recording following the wall as it lead to another room until the tape ran out. "Hey, Sam? You done with that camera yet?" Not receiving a response he shouted again: "Sam?!" There was still no answer so he walked back to the room where he had left her studying the device. Entering the room he spotted her passed out on the floor.

Rushing over, Daniel bent down, to check her pulse, and let out a sigh of relief at finding one. Picking up the radio he called his teammate. "Jack, get back here ... Now!"

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Tuesday 5:02am Mountain Time, Cheyenne Mountain, Colorado

Uncomfortable in her current position and still half asleep, Hermione attempted to turn onto her side, only to succeed in rolling herself off the cot instead. Unbalanced, the metal frame ended up crashing on top of her, knocking into the bookcase and unsettling several items that she had to quickly avoid so they wouldn't hit her in the head. After everything settled, she let out a hiss of pain and shoved the bed off before gripping her ankle which had smacked the floor during the topple, aggravating even further the sprain she had received the day before. Awkwardly crawling to the side table, Hermione stretched her arm up to grab the little bottle of pills that Janet had prescribed to her and quickly dry swallowed the painkillers.

Lying on the floor of her office, Hermione waited a moment to let the lightheadedness from her abrupt wake-up fade before trying to stand. Levering herself up with the help of the desk and chair she almost fell once again before she found her balance, grabbing her crutches to stay up.

What time was it?

Searching the room with her eyes, she found the clock hanging by its cord, dangling off of the bookcase. Righting it, she found herself letting out a huff of frustration, it was only 5:02 in the morning. She had barely gotten four hours of sleep.

After she had brought Kar'yn to the infirmary the night before, the girl had convinced her to stay, wanting to know more about Earth and herself. They had talked for several hours about her work at the SGC and her training with Teal'c, which the girl had been quite curious about. Kar'yn was fascinated that the Jaffa would be teaching her, a woman, how to fight. It also came as a shock to the girl the amount of freedom the women on the base possessed. Apparently, the Goa'uld Moloch, who she had been in the service of, had a habit of treating the female Jaffa on his worlds as second class citizens.

They also discussed her plans for the future as well as the other children whom SG-11 had rescued. Kar'yn had decided for the time being to go with the others if the Free Jaffa agreed to take them in, but she wasn't sure if she wanted to stay.

_"What do you mean? Do you have other plans?" inquired Hermione, sending the girl a look of curiosity. _

_Kar'yn didn't reply; instead, she let her gaze travel around the room as if in search of an answer. Hermione was left to stare at the girl, waiting for her to decide to trust her, and knowing intuitively not to push. Finally coming to a decision, Kar'yn broke the silence. "In my village..." she paused for a moment and Hermione could see the flash of emotion cross her face before being quickly hidden. "In my village, there was talk of a female Jaffa that had declared herself against Moloch. It was rumored that she protected and taught other women that had suffered under his treatment how to fight back. I desire to seek her out, to help my fellow sisters be freed from oppression."_

_Hermione was unfamiliar with the rumor, but wished to know more. Whoever this female Jaffa was, she could be potentially another ally. "Do you know how to find this woman?" _

_With some reluctance Kar'yn admitted she didn't know the Gate address. _

_"Then what are your plans on how to find her?" questioned Hermione. _

_"I would travel to Thaos, a world within Moloch's territory that contains a very large trading village to find more clues," explained Kar'yn. _

_Hermione was unsure if the girl's plan would work, but didn't outright disagree. Grasping her hand, she tried to convey her support, trying to not alienate the girl with her next words. "I'm not going to try and talk you out of this. I believe that you are old enough to make your own choice, but I would ask that you give the Free Jaffa a fair chance first. I understand that you don't trust them, but I do. Trust me." Catching her gaze Hermione gave made sure the girl understood her before continuing. "They are good people. They will take care of the others and you, if you let them."_

_Kar'yn studied her for a moment before reluctantly bowing her head. "I give you my word, Hermione."_

Making sure she was fully balanced on her crutches, Hermione swung herself toward the doorway; she really needed to use the loo, and it was a ways to the locker room. Catching a foul scent, Hermione hoped that she would be able to handle taking a shower as well. She hadn't exactly managed to change out of the clothes she had worn on the last mission before falling asleep, and they were now quite a mess.

Two hallways, a lift ride and three near wipe outs later found Hermione stumbling into the locker room. Steadying herself on the stall door she wondered what was wrong with her balance. She had used crutches before, but had never been this unsteady on them.

Maybe it was the painkillers.

Deciding she would go to see Janet later, Hermione got out the supplies that she stored in her locker to take a shower.

Freshly cleaned and dressed in another uniform she exited the locker room to get some breakfast. It was still early, so she didn't encounter too many people in the cafeteria and managed to snag some fresh fruit before sitting down. Normally the place was packed with people once the shift change occurred. Those coming off of the night shift would be grabbing a bite before heading home and the day shift would be scrambling about looking for a cup of coffee or a quick bowl of cereal before making their way to their posts.

In the months she had been working at the SGC, Hermione had become very familiar with the early morning routines of the base. She had to often arrive before her shift to get in some extra training with Teal'c since, at the end of the day, he normally held classes with the Marines or hung out with Colonel O'Neill. Added to that was the fact that she had developed the same tendencies as the majority of the senior scientists on the base to pull frequent all-nighters.

Daniel was one of the key instigators for this trend, being famous for his caffeine intake and wild ability to suddenly produce translations after weeks with no results in the wee hours. SG-1 and Janet took on the task of making sure the scientist got some sleep by dragging him off the base or revoking his coffee privileges if it got too bad. Major Carter had the same problem, but was much better at managing her schedule, unless it was an emergency situation.

So far, no one had censored Hermione too much for her late nights and she had taken the effort to fly below the radar of the concerned busy-bodies around her. She was used to not getting a lot of sleep and would rather not have to discuss the reasons with her colleagues.

Her past was already known to be a big mystery, great fodder for the gossip mills around the base; the last thing she needed was to have everyone know about her dreams.

Even after all these years, she still had nightmares about the war and the events after. Maybe if she had stayed in the Wizarding World, things would have been different, but that hadn't been the case: she had been cast out. Alone and vulnerable without her magic as protection, they had found her. Made her understand just how inferior she was, made her realize that the life she had been living was over. She had dealt with the rogue Death Eaters, but she had never forgotten that fear.

She had never before felt so helpless.

Snapping out of her reprieve Hermione finished her meal before standing to make her way down to the infirmary to have Janet take a look at her medication when she bumped into Dr. Richard Burwell and Dr. Patrick Fletcher, her co-workers walking into the room. "Oh hello, gentlemen."

As usual Burwell ignored her friendly overture and gave a brisk nod of acknowledgment; he still wasn't too fond of her taking over as Daniel's second-in-command despite Hermione helping to save his ass back when she first started working on the base. Patrick was far more friendly, and she had grown to quite like the man over the months. Helping her to right herself Patrick spoke. "Are you okay, Dr. Granger?"

"Everything is fine." Seeing his skeptical look she elaborated, "I just had a bit of a tumble off-world."

He smiled at her reply. "I can see. Are you busy at the moment?"

"Not really," answered Hermione wondering what was going on.

Gesturing at himself and Burwell, Patrick explained. "We were actually about to stop by your office to see if you could come down to the main lab after we got some coffee, but then we spotted you and were about to come over-"

"Yes?" she prompted hoping to get the man back onto the original topic.

"Do you remember the temple walls on PQ-762 that we were unable to fully translate because of the missing sections?" At her nod he continued. "I've discovered a portion of that same writing being referenced to on a Goa'uld tablet that SG-12 brought back from some lab off-world. It looks like a survey report of an earlier expedition completed by Jaffa working under Ra."

"Ra, really?"

Patrick smiled at the enthusiasm in her voice. "Really. Apparently they found the place years ago and recovered several artifacts from the building before trashing the structure. The tablet has an inventory of what was taken, as well as a copy of the missing inscriptions from the walls."

Hermione was intrigued; Ra's history with the SGC was well known throughout the base. He was the Goa'uld that the first Stargate expedition encountered while on Abydos. The run-in had ended with Colonel O'Neill using a nuclear device to blow up his ship and, as they had later learned, created a power vacuum amongst the System Lords, leading to the rise of Apophis. If they could find out more about Ra's prior activities, what allowed him hold onto his power for so long, it could give them an edge in their fight against the Goa'uld. Hermione could feel her excitement building over the possibility of new knowledge and was quick to take charge. "Alright. Let's get back to the lab and review what you have found out so far. Have you pulled out the file from the mission to PQ-762?"

"Yes, ma'am," was Patrick's playful reply as he made a mock salute at her take-charge mentality.

From the corner of her eye she caught sight of Burwell rolling his eyes at their attitude. The man needed to lighten up. Suppressing her own eye roll, she nodded her head at the door as an invitation to follow. Issuing orders along the way, she was pleased to note that she managed to keep her balance during the walk despite still feeling a bit loopy.

Finding most of the materials she needed, Hermione let herself get lost in her work for a time before the pain in her ankle became distraction enough for her to take a break. Shifting the foot awkwardly off of the chair she had been resting it on she grabbed the crutches, deciding it was high time she went down to the infirmary to get some new pain meds.

"Patrick, I'm going to head down to the infirmary to talk to Janet," she called over her shoulder.

He didn't even look up from his work, just waved her along.

The trek to the infirmary wasn't quite as easy as the one she had taken earlier from the cafeteria, especially with the now busy hallways and Hermione found herself having to stop a couple times to regain her lost balance. Halfway to her destination, the base's alarm sounded for an unscheduled off-world activation and Hermione had to brace herself as several Marines marched by to get to their positions, just in case of attack. Not really worried, she continued onto her goal knowing that several teams were out on missions at the moment and it wasn't that unusual for a team to arrive back early. If anything went wrong, there would be a PA announcement.

Entering the infirmary, the sterile scent hit her noise and for a second she was back in the recovery ward at St. Mungo's, waiting to find out the status of her friends after the Final Battle. Shaking her head to dispel the sudden flash of memory, Hermione searched the room for Janet. Something must be wrong with those pills: ever since she had woken up, she had felt off, and now her careful self-control was crumbling as she once again let her memories take her along old paths that she did not want to deal with while at work.

Suddenly a new feeling overcame her: a heavy weight seemed to be pressing into her from all sides accompanied by a feeling of dread. Something was coming and she couldn't be there. She blinked and tried to focus on her surroundings. Everything seemed to be much too clear and bright; it was overwhelming. Squeezing her eyes shut, she grabbed her head as the sounds around her grew in intensity. People talking, calling her name. She was frozen in place. The pressure around her was building, becoming stronger; it felt like she was in a vise. Almost like she was trying to Apparate, to escape.

Her eyes flew open and locked onto a group at the other end of the infirmary. Her entire focus centered on the figure of the man standing next to one of the hospital beds surrounded by a white light.

_Danger. _

She didn't even notice the staff beginning to shout as the world around her went black.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and Stargate belong to their respective owners, I'm just borrowing them.

Chapter 5, Tuesday part 2

Tuesday 7:19am Mountain Time, Cheyenne Mountain, Colorado

_Examining the device before her, Sam carefully opened the access panel to get a better look at the components held within. Looking over her shoulder, she made sure that Jack wasn't anywhere in the vicinity to catch her doing so. His warning not to touch anything was a valid one knowing their team's past record in accidentally activating some strange and sometimes dangerous alien device. Sam recognized this fact, but her curiosity was peaked at the moment and she decided that as long as she was cautious to avoid any controls, then a closer look inside couldn't hurt. After all, the device was clearly damaged and most likely no longer working. _

_Several crystals captured her attention and she pulled out a couple to examine them more closely for damage. Not noticing anything wrong, she replaced them and moved onto another panel. A sudden feeling of being watched overcame her and she stopped her examination of the panel to search the room with her eyes. Nothing was there. Turning her attention back to the devise a blinding white light surged through her. _

"Next thing you know, I'm waking up with Colonel O'Neill looking down on me." She recounted to Janet the last thing she remembered before passing out on PX-636. The rest of SG-1 had carried her back to the Stargate before she had regained consciousness and upon arriving at the base had been rushed into the infirmary to be checked out. Janet had been fussing over her for the past few minutes without giving her a clear answer and she was becoming annoyed. Exasperated, she offered a possible explanation. "I mean, I suppose it's possible I touched something inside the device."

"You have no contact burns," Janet informed her.

"So, what do you think it was?" questioned Sam.

Before Janet could answer her, a commotion near the doorway grabbed their attention. Looking up Sam saw Dr. Granger standing just inside of the entrance clutching her head as if in pain while one of the nurses tried to gain her attention. The archeologist ignored the woman and Janet began to walk over when suddenly Granger opened her eyes.

Sam was shocked by the panic present in them as she gazed at the empty space next to the bed Sam was resting on. Before anyone could react, Granger's grip on the crutches she was using failed and she sunk to the floor. Jumping up from the bed, Sam rushed over to help move the unconscious woman onto another bed while the infirmary staff began to rush around following Janet's orders. Thankfully, the one nurse had been close enough to make sure the archeologist didn't hit her head, and soon Dr. Granger began to wake up from her collapse.

Hanging back, Sam watched as the woman's eyes flew open, showing her confusion at the new position she was in and she let out a groan as Janet's penlight found her eyes. "Hermione, can you tell me what happened?"

Sam noticed that she still appeared to be a bit disoriented, but was able to answer Janet's question.

"I-I'm not sure. I was..." Pausing in her explanation, Granger let her eyes fall back to the area she had been studying before her collapse, a hint of her earlier fear remaining. Sam studied the area as well, but didn't spot anything out of place and brought her attention back to the woman before her. "I was coming down to see you about the painkillers you prescribed. They are strong, too strong. I feel off-balance and my mind, its...everything aches..." Once again Granger seemed to lose her line of thought and stared off into the distance. As Sam watched, the woman's face paled and she looked like she might pass out once again.

Janet obviously felt the same way and tried to comfort the woman. "Hey, let's just take it easy. Alright? I'm going to find something a little milder for you to take." At the woman's nod she continued. "I'm going to let you rest for now, but I'm also going to run some blood tests to make sure everything is okay." It was then that Janet spotted her standing of to the side and frowned. "Sam, why don't you go back to your bed and I will be over to speak with you in a moment."

Not wanting to push her friend when she was in her doctor-mode, Sam went back to her bed to wait, casting one last look at Granger who seemed to be regaining a bit of color. Sitting on the bed, trying not to fidget in her impatience, Sam watched as one of the nurses took a blood sample off for testing while Janet talked to the archaeologist.

A few minutes later Janet came to join her and concerned she asked. "Is everything okay over there?"

"It looks like she just had a bad reaction to the pain medication I gave her. The strange thing is that she has never had a problem with them in the past so I'm going to run a few tests," Janet informed her. "I suspect that she is suffering much like you from exhaustion."

Caught off guard at the change in subject, Sam could only respond with an unintelligible, "Huh?"

"Well, people have been known to black-out from fatigue," reported Janet, sending her a critical look.

She couldn't contain her scoff at the suggestion. "Come on, Janet. I was a little tired, but-"

Janet cut her off. "Your premature blood tests did show slight anemia."

"But, you gave me clearance to go," protested Sam. She didn't want to hear this. She was a Major in the United States Air Force working on the most closely guarded secret project in the world; she did not pass out from exhaustion.

"And I'm starting to question that judgment." The concern in her voice was apparent to Sam, but she was too stubborn to listen to such nonsense.

Trying to convince Janet, she sent her a reassuring smile filled with confidence. "There is nothing wrong with me."

"Okay." The word was filled with skepticism and Sam knew that she hadn't managed to convince her friend. "At least consider what you've been through the last few years. You have had a Tok'ra symbiote die in your brain, your memory has been stamped, and then your entire consciousness has been transferred into a computer, then back again and that is just for starters. Eventually, it has to take its toll."

Not really listening Sam continued to smile, she just wanted to leave. "Are we done?"

Janet reluctantly nodded. "Yes." Then added sarcastically, "Be sure you come back if you start speaking an alien language."

Sam refrained from chuckling. "I'm sure I'll have no choice." Jumping off of the bed, she walked toward the exit, sending one last glance toward Dr. Granger who was sitting up, watching her. Their gazes locked and a moment of perfect understanding passed between them as Janet's voice drifted across the room to reach them as she began ranted to herself about the stubborn-pig-headed-scientists that populated the base who didn't know when to stop.

They both rolled their eyes.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

_...She stood on a snow bank surrounded by nothing but ice for miles. The meager amount of clothing she had salvaged did nothing to protect her as the wind tore through the thin layers as if they were not there, leaving her violently shivering. She had to keep moving. If she stopped she would only die quicker and she had to warn them... _

_...Her foot slipped on the uneven surface sending her slamming into the snow, floundering down an embankment. She rolled to a stop and struggled to stand. They were approaching. She barely got two steps before a blast of energy sent her sprawling to the ground... _

_...Jerking awake she found herself back in the containment chamber. No. Despite her weakened state she began to gather her energy. She couldn't stay here. Another blast ended her plans... _

_...They dragged her to the chair and strapped her in. She thrashed from side to side in an effort to stop them. This couldn't be happening. Her struggles were in vain. No. Taking one last look at the room her eyes locked onto the silent figure in the back before her world exploded... _

Her eyes flew open as her body jerked back to consciousness, only to immediately flinch away from the harsh light of Janet's penlight. Groaning at the onslaught, Hermione tried to regain her bearings as she examined her surroundings.

What was going on?

Janet's voice interrupted her musings. "Hermione, can you tell me what happened?"

What had happened?

"I-I'm not sure. I was..." She paused as her memory came flooding back. She had come to talk about her medication and everything had suddenly felt off. There had been a man. Searching the room she found no trace of him. Where had he gone? It was then that Hermione took note of the stares she was receiving and remembered Janet's question. "I was coming down to see you about the painkillers you prescribed. They are strong, too strong. I feel off-balance and my mind, its...everything aches..."

Janet put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Hey, let's just take it easy. Alright? I'm going to find something a little milder for you to take." At the concern present in her voice, Hermione nodded in agreement. "I'm going to let you rest for now, but I'm also going to run some blood tests to make sure everything is okay."

The nurses converged around her to start the testing as Janet stepped away to have a word with Major Carter for a moment, giving her a chance to think. She was very confused by what had happened when she walked into the infirmary, that sudden onset of fear. It had been a primal response, her every sense screaming at her to get away, run and never look back. For a moment, it had even seemed like her magic core had reacted and tried to get her to flee, but couldn't find an outlet, causing her to pass out.

Then there had been that man.

What had happened to him?

As far as she could tell, no one else had seen him and, considering the fact that he had been glowing at the time, it would have been hard not to. Was he the danger she had felt? Scanning the room, she couldn't detect any sign of him. She was reluctant to mention the incident to anyone, given that whatever had happened had caused the first conscious stirring of her magic she had felt since drinking that God-awful potion. It shouldn't be possible, but it was.

Her magic was a volatile mess, trapped within her with no release valve all because of that potion the Ministry had forced upon her. They couldn't very well just snap her wand and exile a dangerous criminal without first doing something to prevent her from just obtaining a new one from another magical community.

The potion, _Dedecus_, systematically destroyed all of her body's neural pathways which allowed her to access her magic, effectively cutting off the receptor channels. The problem was that the potion had been administered when her body was still creating new channels as a result of the spell she performed at Hogwarts during the Final Battle.

As a result, her magic had been ineffectively locked away and could spill over; it was what still allowed her to see magical properties despite anti-Muggle wards. As much as she would have liked to keep her ability a secret, others had found out and the Ministry had even sent a team to investigate when she was back in university. They concluded that administering another dose of the potion could likely kill her and, in spite of being a security risk, they did not want to be the ones responsible for her death. Just think of all the bad publicity; she almost snorted at the thought. Instead, she was supposedly monitored by the local Ministry officials as a person of interest, which, considering her constant moving over the years, had never really been that strongly enforced. Except for the enforced check-in when she entered the country. She had never been summoned to the regional Ministry for questioning. Her case was unprecedented, no one knew what might happen and she had become skilled in preventing anyone from looking too closely.

She knew that the damage couldn't be repaired, that she could never again handle a wand, but she could always hope. Whatever had happened before she passed out might just be the effects of her magic flaring. She had been having problems with her pain medication beforehand; combined with any number of factors, it could have messed with her brain chemistry just enough for her to subconsciously touch her magical core. That man could just be a hallucination or a vision of coming trouble; it still rankled her that one of the side effects she had come to expect from her magic spilling over was the occasional prophetic dreams. It would also explain the weird vision she had experienced while she was passed out. She didn't need to have everyone looking at her like she was crazy or altering the entire base to a situation that may not even exist. She should just wait and see what happened.

Breaking Hermione out of her train of thoughts was Janet, who was finished talking to the Major and now wanted to play a game of twenty questions to determine what had happened to herself. "Hermione, how many pills did you take?"

"Just the recommended dosage before I went to sleep and another when I woke up," she replied as Janet wrote down the answer on her chart.

Janet paused in thought before speaking again. "Have you eaten anything today?"

"I had some fruit in the cafeteria earlier," answered Hermione.

With a thoughtful frown Janet looked a bit more concerned. "What about sleep? How many hours did you get last night?"

Not understanding the reason for Janet's expression she cautiously replied. "I got to bed at about one and woke just past five."

"Four hours?" Now she just looked disapproving. "Is that normal for you?"

"Uh, pretty much." Hermione felt like fidgeting at the look Janet was sending her.

"Well that probably explains it."

Confused, Hermione could only utter a surprise. "What?"

"Hermione, I'm still running your blood work, but I don't believe your medication is the sole cause for your collapse. According to the records, you have never had any reaction before, which makes me think that something else is going on," explained Janet.

A little fearful at what Janet had discovered, Hermione asked, "Well, what's wrong?"

With a smile of reassurance, she answered. "You've probably just overworked yourself. There is a reason I told you to take it easy when you are on pain medication. The normal side effects can have a pretty great impact on the body's systems alone; that, in combination with a lack of sleep, would explain your collapse." Normally Hermione would argue with the doctor, but held her tongue. Maybe she was right and everything that happened was a result of exhaustion. Janet continued speaking. "Once your test results are in I'm ordering you off the base for the rest of the day."

Thinking about all the work she still had to do, Hermione objected. "But-"

Janet cut her off. "No buts about it. Hermione, you already have the next two days scheduled off; start your vacation early. Go home and get some rest; doctor's orders." With a huff of frustration Hermione fell back onto the hospital bed. Janet only gave her a smile before walking off to talk to Major Carter.

Oh, this was so unfair.

Hermione had been planning to finish up some paperwork and translations before leaving the base that night. She had the next two days off and she really didn't like leaving any loose ends lying about. Giving into a moment of self pity, Hermione didn't notice Major Carter's approach until the woman caught her eye. They stared at each other for a moment as Janet's voice carried across the room to meet their ears. She was talking to herself, complaining about the stubbornness of the scientists on the base about how they should know to slow down. In a moment of rare understanding, both the women rolled their eyes in unison before the Major departed the room.

Left to her own devices, Hermione tried to relax and not let her mind drift toward any dangerous subjects. Twenty minutes later, Janet gave her the all clear and told her to leave the base after giving her a new prescription. "If you are not gone within the hour, I'm having an airman escort you out."

Knowing not to ignore her threat, Hermione quickly swung herself out of the infirmary on her crutches. She had to hurry if she wanted to stop by the rooms the Jaffa children her team had rescued were staying in. Entering the room, she found Kar'yn playing with a couple of the younger children. Grabbing her attention Hermione made sure that the girl was comfortable and adjusting to her situation before telling her she had to leave for the day. The girl was upset, but calmed after Hermione promised to come back if anything happened. As she exited the room she made sure to inform the guards at the door that they were to contact her the moment a message was received from the Free Jaffa or if any problems occurred.

Satisfied that her orders would be carried out, Hermione limped back to her lab to organize her belongings to leave for the rest of the day and inform her staff. Leaving the lab, struggling to hold onto her bag and maintain her balance, Hermione was surprised to find the burden suddenly lifted away. Turning she met a smirking Kurtis who donned a southern drawl once he had her attention. "Well hello, little lady."

Playing her part, Hermione bit back a laugh. "Thank you kindly."

He slid in front of her with a flourish, hitting the button for the lift. "Are you going my way?" She quirked her eyebrow in response and received a chuckle in return. Dropping the act his face shifted to a more serious one. "So how are you? I heard that Fraiser is kickin' ya out for the rest of the day."

"Base gossip sure travels fast." She tried to tone back the sarcasm, but wasn't sure if she succeeded all that well.

The lift arrived and they both stepped in. She hit the button for the top level and waited for him to do the same, but he didn't move. Noticing the look she was sending Kurtis gave her a pointed look of his own before breaking the silence. "How are you getting home?"

Hermione froze in thought. "Ah, well I...I guess I hadn't thought about that." It hadn't even occurred to her that with her sprain, driving her truck home could be a problem.

"Don't worry, I've got it covered," replied Kurtis as the doors to the lift slide open. They exited it before heading toward the security check point and the second lift. Time passed as they traveled up to the surface and Kurtis led her toward his car, opening the door for her. "Your chariot awaits."

"Thank you," Hermione said with sincerity. She had no idea how she would of made it back to her flat otherwise.

"Hey, no problem."

The ride to her place didn't take that long and, before she knew it, they were pulling up to the curb. Kurtis helped her out and helped to carry her stuff up to the flat. She offered to get him something to eat, but he declined. "Thanks for the offer, but I've got to get back to the base." He walked to the door, but turned back at the last minute. "Before I forget I'm supposed to remind you of the party at Scott's, 1600 Thursday."

Hermione remembered the call she had received from Scott's wife Claire the week before and the invitation to her very first Thanksgiving Day dinner. "I'll be there."


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or Stargate. Dialogue is borrowed from the episode 'Acension.'

Chapter 6, Tuesday part 3

Shuffling through his notes, Daniel spoke. "I'm sure the structure was built about 400 years ago, although the civilization may date back as far as 3,000."

"Why is that significant?" asked Colonel Rhynolds who had joined their debriefing on Hammond's request.

"Well, it may indicate that the society developed in relative isolation, and was only later influenced by something that allowed it to leap to a more..." he waved his hands to emphasize his point, "...advanced level of technology.""

"A Stargate?" guessed General Hammond.

Daniel nodded. "Exactly. Which means they either discovered it, or figured out how to use it just prior to building the device. It seems to me that these events lead to the catechism which ended their society," theorized Daniel. Whatever the device was, it was beyond anything a civilization at that level of development should possess.

Jack prompted him. "Somehow."

Once again Daniel made an objective guess backed by his findings. "Well, from what we know of the Goa'uld, they would often attack a planet that was threatening technological advancement." It had happened before and, judging from their own experiences fighting the Goa'uld, it was still a standard practice.

It was at this moment Hammond decided to interrupt his explanation by steering the conversation onto a different point. "I'm sorry, but I haven't heard anyone say exactly what the device is."

"Uh, well, we're just speculating. It could be just a...deep space observatory for all I know..." Daniel trailed off at the look he was getting from the man at his lack of an answer.

"Or a big, honking space gun, sir," suggested Jack, and Daniel resisted the urge to sigh; of course Jack would think that. The Major obviously didn't hold the same reservations and let lose a chuckle at the comment as he continued to type on the laptop he had brought to the meeting.

"Well, it's likely the Goa'uld would have taken that," Daniel pointed out. Before anyone could comment, the echo of footsteps racing down the hallway caught their attention. Turning, Daniel caught sight of Sam as she stepped into the room.

Not even bothering to look up from her paper she launched into her findings. "Well, whatever it is, the power core is missing." Everyone just look at her before she settled in the seat next to Jack. Not noticing their surprise at her appearance she continued. "I was able to determining that much before I...uh..."

"Dozed off?" supplied Jack rather unhelpfully.

Daniel held his breath fully anticipating Sam to start arguing with Jack, but was surprised when she actually smiled at her teammate before ignoring his jib completely. "The engineering of the device is extremely advanced. It's gonna take some time to decipher."

Clearing his throat, Rhynolds spoke up, drawing Sam's attention. "You're saying that the...uh...power core to the device is missing?"

Hammond stepped in before she could answer. "Major, you know Colonel Rhynolds?"

"Of course." The two smiled at each other in greeting, but Daniel could see the confusion present in her eyes at the addition of the man to their debriefing.

"He's been transferred from Area 51, and will be leading SG-16 during its long-term analysis of the planet," the General informed his teammate and Daniel watched, concerned, as the smile slid off of Sam's face at the news.

"Ah...Well, as I was saying...uh...I believe that a naquada generator could be interfaced to..." She continued to report trying unsuccessfully to hide her displeasure until Jack interrupted her.

"Carter?" She looked at him. "Sixteen is on the case."

Taking the opportunity to once again take control of the meeting and likely break up the tension between his officers, Hammond spoke up. "Once I've heard someone conclusively tell me what the device is, I will decide whether we should try and turn it on."

"Of course. Request permission to join SG-16's assignment, sir," Sam was quick to ask.

Rather quickly Hammond objected. "Denied." Sam looked very confused and Daniel hoped his friend would think first before trying to belabor the point. "Doctor Jackson will be assisting in the translation of the Alien language until SG-1's next mission." Out of the corner of his eye he saw Jack sit up at the General's phrasing. "Otherwise, you're all free to take some time off. Dismissed."

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Everyone rose as Hammond stepped out of the room headed toward the control room. Picking up her pace Sam, caught up with the General. "Sir, with all due respect, I feel fine. There is absolutely no reason why I shouldn't be allowed to help."

With a sigh, Hammond's voice took on a more steely quality. "Major, I have no doubt that your technological expertise will be required at some point down the line, but until Doctor Frasier advises otherwise, I am ordering you to take it easy."

The General proceeded to step around her, leaving Sam standing in the hallway trying to regain her composure. Turning, she caught sight of her smirking teammate leaning against the doorway. Seeing Jack, she couldn't hold it in any longer. "Take it easy?!"

He cocked his eyebrow at her anger. "Yeah. You've been a little tense."

"Tense? Me? I'm not tense...am I?" It took a moment for her to register how she must sound and, much more subdued, she asked. "When did you first notice?"

Very slowly Jack said. "As...we...met."

"I've always just thought of myself as being very..." She used her fingers to make imaginary quotation marks. "Focused."

"It's called working too hard; you're gonna crash and burn."

Sam paused for a moment, lost in thought. "I really don't have that much more to do, sir."

"Well, find something. Take up golf." He began to walk away. "Fly a kite, knit something."

"I-I'm fine! Really!" Sam protested.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Tuesday, 4:48pm London, England

Ginny slammed shut the trunk she had been packing at the sound of James' crying. Rushing into the nursery, she picked up the boy before his cries woke his father. Harry hadn't arrived home from work until well into the morning and had promptly stumbled upstairs before falling into bed to catch up on his sleep. From the little she had heard of his mumbling, he had gotten caught up in a case that had taken up his attention long after his shift had ended.

Gentling picking up her baby boy, Ginny bounced him on her hip. "Shhhh, shhhh little man. We don't want to wake daddy now, do we? No, we don't. Shhhh. There, there, that's better now."

At just over a year old James was constantly trying to get out of his playpen and had once again fallen onto his bottom in his latest attempt. Still murmuring her reassurances Ginny walked back toward the spare bedroom she had been using to organize their things for the upcoming trip to the States. Their international Portkey wasn't scheduled to leave until 3:51pm local time Wednesday in order for them to arrive in Boston just in time to watch the sunrise again. She knew there was still plenty of time to organize all of their supplies, but she preferred to make sure that nothing would be forgotten in the confusion.

The plan was to visit her brothers for a bit as they completed the final prep-work for the grand opening of WWW the American branch. After recovering from the international Portkey and taking a potion to compensate for the time zone displacement, they wanted to do a little sightseeing and stop by the shop before heading on to their next stop. Later in the day they would be using the temporary Floo connection that the American Ministry would be setting up for them to travel to Hermione's flat.

Packing another pair of socks for Harry, Ginny nearly jumped out of her skin when a stuffed toy came sailing through the door nearly hitting her in the head. Thankfully she managed to jerk out of the way and the toy settled into her son's arms without causing any damage. Looking at her grinning boy she couldn't help but smile at the display of accidental magic. The boy had been showing signs for the last few months and like all magical children the results had varied. Everything from flying toys, disappearing bath water, to exploding mashed peas and, according to her mother, it was likely to get worse.

She hoped that nothing too obvious happened when they visited Hermione. Ginny knew that the last thing her friend needed was a team of Aurors arriving at her flat to investigate, and she could only imagine the trouble it would cause if something were to occur when they were over at her colleague's place for dinner. Hermione had arranged to take the visiting couple to a traditional American Muggle holiday dinner, Thanksgiving, during their stay hosted by a co-worker.

Finally finished with her organization, Ginny slammed the truck shut and, with a flick of her wand, sent it to rest by the front door. Shifting James to her other side Ginny bounced the boy on her hip as she moved toward the kitchen; it was time to start dinner.

Getting lost in the motions, she didn't notice anyone entering the room until she felt a pair of strong arms encircle her waist and a head of messy black hair burrow against her neck kissing the sensitive flesh. "Um, you smell good."

Turning in his arms Ginny wrapped her free arm around her husband and allowed herself a moment to just bask in the familiar comfort he provided her. Letting her voice drop to a sexy pitch and teased, "Why hello to you too, Mr. Potter."

Before things could get more heated, James' voice grabbed their attention. "Daddy!" The moment was broken at the sound of the squeal. Harry proceeded to take the boy from her arms swinging him around the kitchen making funny noises in the process. "Woooo, higher, daddy. Higher! Yeahh!" As her two boys continued to play Ginny took the opportunity to discreetly open a drawer which held a wizarding camera. Acting quickly she was able to take a few pictures before the pair noticed her actions and sent her twin glares. James, she had learned, was just like his father and hated to have his picture taken.

She let a small giggle escape at their matching expressions which only caused Harry's scowl to deepen. Giving Harry a sheepish look she responded, "Sorry, I couldn't help it."

As she continued to snicker Harry gently set James into his highchair before abruptly charging at her. Letting out a shriek of surprise Ginny scrambled to put the kitchen table between them. At a standstill, Ginny kept an eye on her sneaky husband and tried to placate him. "Now, Harry, there is really no need to act out, it was just a picture."

The corners of his mouth began to turn up. "Ginny, dear."

She remained wary. "Yes, Harry."

"Run." Before she could react to the warning he leaped over the table and trapped her against the wall as she struggled to get away. Laughing, the two found themselves snogging, and all thoughts pertaining to tomorrow's plans soon flew out of her head.

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He stared across the table at the girl and wait for her to speak. Neither wanted to break the silence that had settled since Teal'c had requested Ka'ryn accompany him to dine in the cafeteria. As the minutes ticked by Teal'c couldn't help but use the opportunity to study the girl. He took note of her tense posture and furrowed brow.

Finally she spoke, "What is it you wish to discuss with me?"

"Fighting the Goa'uld requires more than determination, it requires skill." He let the meaning of his words sink in before continuing. "You have the spirit of a warrior, but not the training."

The girl's gaze became even more unyielding and her posture rigid. "This is true."

Not revealing his thoughts on her answer Teal'c switched subjects. "HermioneGranger thinks very highly of you." He watched her reaction with keen interest. At the mention of the doctor's name Ka'ryn's eyes flickered with curiosity before she managed to hide the emotion once again. "And she has proven to be an admirable judge of character."

He let that statement hang in the air, allowing the girl's curiosity to get the best of her. He had observed Ka'ryn at the meeting the previous day and wanted to know what had sparked such an intense interest in the archaeologist for the girl. Teal'c had watched as the girl copied HermioneGranger's movements throughout the meeting then later on in the cafeteria. He found it very unusual for the young Jaffa to extend her trust so readily to the doctor given her sheltered life and openly hostile attitude toward him thus far. He was after all a fully grown Jaffa warrior, a mirror image of the men that had stolen her from her village; she was bound to be on guard around him.

Her patience finally broke and the girl began to cautiously speak. "Hermione is a very accomplished warrior."

Teal'c lifted an eyebrow at the observation, but remained silent. He knew that HermioneGranger had learned a great deal in the short time she had been working at the SGC during the course of their sparing sessions. The woman showed a natural aptitude for defense that many had overlooked because of her position as a science geek, as O'Neill had put it, at the base. Teal'c didn't know much of the doctor's past, but he recognized the same signs that Ka'ryn had obviously spotted. HermioneGranger had known what it was to be hunted, had known what it was like to fight for her life and it had left its mark on her.

"I have never seen a woman fight like that before." He could hear the wonder in the girl's tone.

He waited for Ka'ryn to elaborate on the subject, but when she didn't continue he decided to address the matter. "Did the women in your village not display such skills in their defense practice?"

"No." She paused for a moment, reluctant to share. "Moloch puts no value in the education of women. We were noting but breeding tools for him."

It was not a practice Teal'c had grown up with on Chulak, where female Jaffa were taught alongside the men in order to defend the village in case of an attack, but it was not unheard of on other worlds. Many Goa'uld kept their female Jaffa ignorant of the arts of war. It must have been quite a shock for the girl to have seen the archaeologist take on a Jaffa warrior single handedly in order to save her.

With a greater understanding of her actions toward the doctor as of late, Teal'c continued his previous line of thought. "The Free Jaffa have many exceptional warriors within their ranks with much to teach."

"You would advise me to learn from them," surmised Ka'ryn.

"Indeed." Teal'c hoped his words would encourage the girl to reconsider her resistance to joining the Free Jaffa. Ka'ryn had the makings of a very fine warrior, one he imagined could be of great benefit to their fight against the Goa'uld.

With her face a mask of stone, Ka'ryn spoke letting Teal'c know she had seen through his manipulations. "And how many of the women from your camps are actually allowed onto the front lines?" He remained silent when faced with her anger. "If I wished to be treated like a child again I would go back to my home world."

"I do not believe you are a child."

Turning away from his searching eyes, she spoke. "No. You believe me to be just another Jaffa and are treating me as such." She met his gaze head on. "I am not just another Jaffa, I am my own person, I will make my own way and my own choices in life. Whether I succeed or fail, I will stand on my own."

"And how will your choices affect those in your care?" Asked Teal'c reminding her of the other children she had helped protect from Nut's men.

"I have no obligation to them beyond making sure that they have found homes again," Ka'ryn informed him. "I will stay amongst the Free Jaffa long enough to make sure that they have done so."

"You are determined to leave then?" asked Teal'c.

"Yes. My fight is against Moloch and freeing the enslavement of my sisters from not just the Goa'uld, but the traditions that have bound them these many years. The old ways need to change," pronounced Ka'ryn.

Teal'c inclined his head at the conviction in the girl's voice. "I wish you luck in your endeavors, but know that if you ever need a place of refuge you will be welcome amongst both the Free Jaffa and the Tauri."

With the tension between the pair finally resolved, Ka'ryn relaxed and spoke to him of her plans. The rumors of a camp of female Jaffa who stood against the oppression of the System Lord Moloch interested him and he decided to speak of it with Master Bra'tac once his mentor had responded to the message he had sent concerning the relocation of the band of orphaned Jaffa children.

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Tuesday 10:55pm Mountain Time, Colorado Springs, Colorado

Shutting down the computer for the night, Hermione threw up her hands letting her back arch off of the chair as she stretched. It was time for her to get to bed. After Janet had kicked her off of the base she had come home and allowed herself to take a quick nap before isolating herself in her office for the rest of the day. She had used the time to check her emails and complete some of her backlogged projects.

While working for the SGC was quite satisfying, it tended to be isolating and Hermione didn't want to lose touch with the rest of the world around her again. She had let it happen once before when she had so immersed herself into the magical community that she had barely been able to function as a Muggle afterward. If things went pear-shaped, Hermione didn't want to face the possibility of re-entering the competitive job market with her academic knowledge being grossly outdated; that is, if they let her survive in the first place.

Reaching out to switch off the desk lamp her eyes caught sight of the calendar and the big red circle around tomorrow's date. "Oh, no."


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I still own nothing of Harry Potter or Stargate. Dialogue borrowed from the episode 'Acension.'

Chapter 7 Wednesday, part 1

Wednesday 7:38am Mountain Time, Colorado Springs, Colorado

_"...the tone of the talks has so far proved to be amicable, but as of last night no agreement has been reached between the two parties. A representative for United Airlines has announced that a strike at this time remains unlikely, and that all measures have been taken to insure that there is no interruption to holiday travel plans..."_

Click.

Sam turned off the morning news report and took her empty cereal bowl back to the kitchen. Rinsing out the bowl, she put it away before heading back out of the kitchen. Picking up her house keys, she headed outside, locking the door behind her before storing the keys under a fake rock. Taking a moment to appreciate the mild weather they were having, Sam began to perform a series of stretches.

Once she was fully limber, she began to run, letting her body fall into a familiar rhythm. The scenery flew by and her usually busy mind slowed down until she was only focused on her body's movements. Time seemed to float away and before she knew it, Sam found herself turning the last corner arriving back on her street having completed the three mile route.

Grabbing the hide-a-key Sam opened the door and hit the button on the answering machine as she walked back toward the kitchen. The machine beeped. "You have no new messages."

With a sigh of frustration, she opened the fridge, taking out a bottle of water and swallowing most of the contents. Uh, she hated being kept out of the loop. Logically Sam knew it was unlikely that anyone from work would take the time to call unless it was an absolute emergency, what with her enforced leave and all, but she couldn't help hoping someone would clue her into the progress being made in exploring those ruins.

Was it really so hard for one of her teammates to just pick up the phone and give her a simple update? What was she thinking? Of course it was; they were men, after all.

God, she was already going stir crazy. She needed to stop moping and do something other than glare at the machine, mentally berating her teammates. Maybe Jack was right and she really didn't know how to slow down. Determined to not let herself dwell on the matter any longer she stormed into the back of the house.

Stripping off her clothes, she turned on the hot water and got into the steaming shower. Resting her head against the tile she let the cascade of water do its work, releasing the built up tension in her shoulders and she tried to relax. Her mind wandered making and discarding plans.

When the water began to get cold, Sam stepped out and got dressed, throwing her dirty sweats into the hamper before heading back into the kitchen. Opening the refrigerator she scanned the contents and began to make a grocery list. With the amount of time she spent on the base and off-world, she tended not to keep many perishables around. Grabbing her keys she decided to head over to the local store and pick up some basics.

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With a grunt of effort, Hermione hauled herself off of the bathroom floor making sure not to knock over any of the cleaning supplies she had been using. Keeping a firm grip on the sink she managed to put away the bottles before she hop-stepped out of the room. With a little maneuvering, she made her way back into the living room and sunk onto the sofa, exhausted. For a moment she just let herself relax and propped her ankle up on the coffee table while she studied the room. It was pristine: every surface was scrubbed, dusted, and polished.

She had been up since the wee hours getting everything ready for the Potter invasion scheduled for later that day. Hermione had completely forgotten about it until she had spotted the mark on her calendar the previous night. So far she had successfully managed to not injure herself scrambling around her flat cleaning and had even managed to move most of her things into her office, opening up the bedroom for the visitors. Normally she wouldn't have put in this much of an effort, but she hadn't actually been by her flat for a couple weeks and the place really needed the airing out.

Sweeping the stray hairs out of her face, Hermione sighed; there was still so much to do. After she finished setting up her temporary quarters, and how she was going to get the extra cot out of storage didn't even bear thinking, Hermione still had to go out for groceries. With another sigh she began to brainstorm possible ways she could get to the store without having to call a cab. It took a moment of thought before she finally called Claire, Scott's wife, hoping to get a lift.

It rang for a moment before the soft sound of Claire's voice reached her ears. "Hello."

"Hi, Claire. It's Hermione."

"Oh, dear it's so good to hear from you." The joy in Claire's voice was apparent. "I was meaning to call you and make sure that everything was still set for tomorrow. Scott told me that you had a tumble and might not be up to baking any time soon. Is everything all right? There is still time for me to get everything together by myself if I start now."

Her voice was slightly frantic by the end of her ramblings and Hermione rushed to reassure the woman. "No, no, everything is alright. In fact, I'm trying to get a head start on everything. My kitchen is pretty empty right now and I was calling to see if you could give me a ride over to the store to pick up supplies. I would do it myself, but with my ankle..."

She trailed off, but Claire was quick to step in. "Of course, I completely understand, my dear. Unfortunately I can't get away from the house right now."

"Oh, that's alright, I'm sure I can find another-"

Claire cut her off. "Not at all. Eric is home from the Academy with a friend and I'm sure the boys can take some time away from their important movie marathon to take an injured co-worker of his father's to the store. That is if they actually want to eat anything for Thanksgiving dinner."

Hermione wasn't sure if that last part was directed at her or the boys in question, and judging from the groans coming across the line she assumed the latter. "If it's not too much trouble."

"No trouble at all. I'll get the boys the directions and send them over in fifteen?" she asked.

"That sounds good and thank you."

"You're welcome. I hope that you are feeling better and remember to call if you need anything else." The mothering tone of her voice was back.

"I will. Bye, Claire."

"Bye, dear."

Hermione hung up the line glad that everything had worked out, hopefully she could rope the boys into helping her set up the cot before they left. Looking down at her filthy clothes, Hermione decided to try and change before Eric and his friend arrived.

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Putting away the last of her bags, Sam headed back outside to check her mail box. The weather was still holding steady and she briefly wondered if it would be a good idea to do a little gardening or if it would just be a waste of effort when it started snowing. Opening the box, she grabbed the obligatory junk mail and bills before meeting the eyes of a man standing in the previously empty road.

"Hi," greeted the mystery man.

Startled Sam looked around for how this stranger could have snuck up on her before warily responding. "Hi."

Taking a few steps forward he again spoke. "How are you?"

Confused by his actions she replied with a forced smile. "Fine...how are you?"

"Good." He paused for a moment before continuing. "Nice to meet you."

Not sure how to respond to this stranger who was starting to make her five shades of uncomfortable with his presence, she stayed silent. Who was he? What was he doing here? There was just something off about him. Deciding to try to get some more information she tried to maintain the ideal chit-chat. "Yeah, uh, are you from around here?"

"No. But this is where you live."

Alright, that settled it, she was officially freaked. Sam looked around uneasily, her smile slipping away, as she tried and failed to keep her voice calm. "Yes, it is. I'm gonna go back inside now."

Not deterred by her manor he continued. "Hope to see you again."

"Bye." Turning away she walked back into the house glancing over her should to keep the guy in her sight; he just remained standing there unmoving. Closing the door she flipped the lock and looked out through the window.

He was gone.

Alright, that was strange.

Walking into the kitchen she picked up the cordless and dialed a familiar number. It rang several times before it was finally picked up. "Daniel Jackson."

Sam could hear a note of frustration in the tone, but ignored it and greeted her teammate. "Hey. Daniel. It's me."

"Hi, Sam," he said with a much friendlier tone of voice.

She wanted to tell him about the stranger she had just met, but hesitated. She didn't have any evidence that the guy was anything other than a weirdo and didn't feel like listening to her teammate write off the incident as stress. Before the silence stretched anymore she mentally switched topics. "I was just wondering how far you've gotten on the 636 translation."

"Oh, yes! Um. Yeah, I'm almost done...it...uh...Miraculously seems to hold all of the keys to all the mysteries of the universe." He didn't even attempt to hide the sarcasm.

"You just got there, you haven't started, and I should just leave you alone," Sam translated.

"Well, I thought you were supposed to be taking it easy," came Daniel's concerned response.

She grimaced. "Yeah, it's not so easy."

Daniel sounded sympathetic. "Yeah, I know. I'll call you when I have something."

"Okay, thanks." Hanging up the phone Sam turned around only to jump back at the sight of the strange man from earlier standing in the middle of her kitchen. "How did you get in here?!"

"I won't hurt you."

That wasn't the answer she was looking for. "No, I'll hurt you if you come any closer!" Fumbling with the cordless she began to dial the base for backup.

"Please don't. I just wanna talk to you." Something about the tone of his voice stopped her and she took a moment to really look at the guy.

The vulnerability on his face shocked her, but she remained cautious. "About what?"

"It's complicated."

"Let's start with how you got into my house." It was the most logical place to start and Sam really wanted to know how he had managed to get in without her noticing.

"I followed you home last night," was the calm reply.

Sam was shocked. "You've been here all night?!"

"I read some of your books, and watched the television so that I could learn how to speak and what to wear," He looked down. "Is this okay?"

"You've been in my house all night?" Sam was not dropping that topic until she got a clear answer.

"Yes, but you couldn't see me. I just took this form now so that we could relate. Actually, I use to look this way before my Ascension." Sam could only stare at him before picking up the phone to begin dialing the base. "Please. I'm not crazy."

She slammed the phone down in frustration and shouted angrily. "Who are you?!"

"My name is Orlin. I'm from the planet you just visited." Probably seeing the disbelief still on her face, Orlin elaborated. "I followed you back through the Stargate."

She scoffed. "See? that's impossible!" After the Re'tu had infiltrated the base new security measures had been implemented, including infra-red scanners. Anything that tried to get through the Gate would have shown up.

"I can become intangible." He walked through the table to demonstrate. She stepped back in fear grabbing onto the counter. "In my natural incorporial state."

"What do you want?" demanded Sam.

"I'm sorry if I scared you. I just...wanted to talk to you. It's been so long since I-I...I know that this is going to seem...I'll just come out and say it, and we can just move on from there. I have these..." Sam slowly began to back away as Orlin became distracted by his rambling. "I guess you could call them feelings...actually the truth is..." Fleeing the room she could just make out the last of his words as she ran out the front door, letting it slam shut behind her. "I love you."

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"On the count of three. One...two...three." With a grunt of effort Eric and his friend, Trent, lifted the cot above their heads and carefully stepped around the boxes in her storage unit until they were free of the mess.

"Alright over here." Directing the boys toward her truck Hermione was pleased to see that they didn't just throw the thing in, but carefully lowered it down. "Thank you gentlemen."

"No problem, Hermione," replied Eric, whose face had begun to turn a little red at her praise. Grabbing his friend he gestured toward her unit. "We'll just lock everything up and be on our way in a jiff."

In the haste of moving to the States, many of Hermione's belongings had been lost in the confusion and just shoved into storage until she could figure out what to do with the stuff. Regrettably, with her schedule being what it was, she hadn't gotten around to figuring out what to do with everything. Thankfully Eric and his friend had been willing to help get the cot out of the deathtrap. Injured or not, Hermione didn't believe she could have accomplished it on her own.

Waiting for the boys to finish up, Hermione sat in her truck reviewing the grocery list she had made and hoped that she would be able to find everything given the mass confusion of the holiday crowd. Scott and Claire were hosting a Thanksgiving Extravaganza for the whole team along with their own extended family. At last count over twenty people would be attending and everyone had been assigned certain dishes to bring.

Not too many years ago this would have sent Hermione into a panic, but the time she spent as a student in Rome had not gone amiss and she had actually learned the fine art of cooking. While waitressing at a small family owned restaurant to help pay the bills, the matriarch had decided that a pretty young lady like herself needed to know her way around a kitchen if she were to ever get a husband.

Needless to say Hermione had learned and learned well.

The sound of the door opening broke Hermione out of her meditative state as the boys jumped in the truck. As they flew down the streets she let herself get lost in their simple conversation about life at the Academy and favorite hobbies.

The store was just as crowded as she thought, the throng of people making it nearly impossible to navigate the narrow shelves and, with her crutches, it was a recipe for disaster. Thankfully, Eric maintained a hold on her arm and helped guide her through the store in search of supplies, all the while sporting a flaming red face. Hermione tried to politely pretend she didn't notice his embarrassment or the subtle glances between the friends, but it was difficult.

Completing their circuit of the store, the trio packed up and headed back to her flat with the purchases. The boys once again took charge; Hermione briefly wondered if Claire had read them the riot act before they came over, allowing her to sit back and direct them from the comfort of the kitchen stool.

"Hermione, where do you want this?" Trent held up a bag of dried cranberries and hazelnuts.

Pointing toward the pantry, she said, "Second shelve from the top, and throw the bag of chocolate chips up there as well." Nodding his head in agreement Trent did as he was told while Eric stood there with a puzzled face. "Is something wrong?"

Snapping out of his contemplative state he answered. "Uh, yeah. I was just kind of wondering what all this is for...I'm no cook or anything, Mom said you were going to be bringing some of the desserts and stuff, but this doesn't look very...familiar." He hesitated on the last word as if he meant to say something else perhaps less flattering.

Holding back a smile at the boy's attempt Hermione spoke. "As is probably very apparent I'm not American and a traditional Thanksgiving meal is not something I have ever experienced before. Your mother therefore thought it might be comforting to allow me to create some dishes I might be more familiar with, as long as they used some conventional Thanksgiving ingredients." Pausing in thought, she continued, "I think she thought it might be more authentic in a way since rustic English food would more closely resemble what the original pilgrims created."

"Sounds like her," commented Eric. "But that still doesn't really explain the chocolate or some of the other stuff we got."

Hermione laughed. "I'm afraid she didn't take into account that I learned to cook from a little old Italian lady. Therefore my dishes aren't quite the hardy country fair she might be expecting."

"What do you have in mind?" asked Trent, clearly finding an interest in the conversation.

"I'm going to be making a bread pudding with dried cranberries, roasted hazelnuts and chocolate chips. For my friend Harry, a bit more of a traditional English dish: treacle tart." At their confused faces, she elaborated. "It's a pastry with a very sugary filling...Anyway I was also going to make some pumpkin pasties and bake a bunch of different dinner rolls, biscuits, fresh bread and if I have the time a Yorkshire pudding."

"Ah, wow. That's an awful lot of stuff," commented Trent. They both started at her, stunned for a moment.

"Don't worry about it. I like cooking, I just never really get much of an opportunity to do so." For a second a terrible feeling of loneliness assaulted her, imagining all the missed dinners she could have spent with family and friends. If only things had been different.

"Well, mom is sure to be impressed. I think she expected one or two desserts and some bread," remarked Eric, shaking his head in amusement.

A grin spread over Hermione's face at the comment. "I've always been a bit of an overachiever. Let's finish putting all this away and I'll make you guys some sandwiches for the road."

The boys got back to work and were soon finished unpacking everything. While they wondered off to her office to set up the cot, Hermione got out the makings for a couple sandwiches and started the prep work for the meal she was making for her guests. Once the two were fed she sent them on their way and continued her work on dinner.

Barely a hour later, a clatter came from her living room as the wall shifted to form a fireplace and a burst of green flame appeared. Out of the blaze fell her best friend followed by several suitcases crashing into his prone form from behind as Ginny stepped gracefully out of the fireplace carrying baby James.

"I see you still haven't mastered your landings."

A sheepish bespeckled Harry wiped the soot from his brow and cloths. "It's good to see you too, Hermione. Ah, nice place."


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I still do not own Harry Potter or Stargate despite my Christmas wish. Dialogue is taken from the episode 'Acension.'

A/N: Sorry about the inconsistences in posting the last couple days, but with the holidays things have been a little hectic.

Chapter 8 Wednesday, part 2

Wednesday 3:11pm Mountain Time Colorado Springs, Colorado

Watching as the security team installed yet another camera in her home, Sam masked a wince of aggravation.

Was this really all necessary?

Her attention was brought back to the present as Jack as continued to question her. "He looked like an ordinary guy?"

"Pretty much," she affirmed and let her eyes travel back to the man balancing on a ladder and repositioning the camera being installed in her living room.

"What was he wearing?" Jack inquired.

"Average, normal clothes," she replied listlessly.

"Where do you think he got 'em?"

At the unexpected query Sam shifted her attention back to her annoying commanding officer who was grinning at his own joke. "Come on, sir." Falling onto the sofa, she sent him a glare. "We've seen lots of aliens before."

Taking a seat across from her, he spoke. "Hammond had the surveillance tapes from the Gate room checked..." He shook his head from side to side.

"The alien said he could become invisible," supplied Sam knowing that she had already repeated that information several times to the skepticism of most. Damn Janet for making everyone think that she was overworked and imagining things.

Jack didn't refute her claim, but she could tell he wasn't quite buying the whole story. "What else did he say?"

"He just said who he was and where he was from. Believe me, sir. At first I thought he was just some crazy guy off the street...and then he starts walking through solid objects! I knew there was no way I could contain him if I tried. My phoneline was dead, and I figured the best thing to do was call and bring in a Code 3 team in here as fast as possible."

"Carter. No one's accusing you of acting improperly." Jack tried to placate her.

Thankfully before her temper got the better of her and she did something she would later regret, one of the security team diverted his attention. "Colonel, we're done. I'm ordering my men to evacuate the premises."

"All right. Notify the local authority." He vaguely waved his hand toward the outside of the house. "Tell them that the gas leak is fixed."

"Yes, sir. Our remote surveillance system is set up, and can be monitored from a van on the street. We'll watch the place as long as you want, sir," reported the airman.

"Thanks." Sam smiled feeling relief. Finally they would be leaving. Nodding his head in acknowledgment of her appreciation the airman walked out of the room followed by a few other tech guys who had finished gathering their equipment.

Jack, probably reading her thoughts, mirrored her grin and stood up. "Uh...I could hang out for a while."

Smiling, Sam shooed him toward the door. "So far he's only shown himself to me."

"Maybe he's shy," teased the Colonel.

Shaking her head in aggravation, she began to usher him out of the house. "Please don't say take it easy."

Leaving his tone sobered. "Take care."

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Wednesday 4:57pm Mountain Time Colorado Springs, Colorado

Using tongs, Hermione removed the steaks from the skillet and placed them on the serving tray to rest. Leaning across the counter top into the dining room, she addressed her friends. "Dinner's almost ready." It was still early, but she knew that with the amount of time between time zones and what her friends had been doing for the day, it was best to feed them as soon as possible.

Ginny, who had been setting the table (since Hermione had learned from past experience to ban her from any sort of modern kitchen; the redhead still had trouble using Muggle electronics), spoke. "I'm almost done here. Are you sure you don't need any help in there?"

Hermione could see Harry suppressing a smile as he busied himself putting together James's highchair and she followed suit. If memory served her it had taken nearly three weeks for Hermione to get out the burnt smell out of her flat the last time Ginny had tried to help her work a Muggle toaster when she had been living in Paris. "No I'm almost done. I just need to finish the sauce, but you can take the salad and stuff out to the table."

"No problem; we don't want you straining yourself. Honestly, you're getting just as bad as Harry," she said referring to Hermione's injured ankle and the other mishaps she had encountered since joining the SGC.

"Hey, I am no were near as bad as Mr. Hospital Wing over there," Hermione joked and gave the other woman a friendly shove at the slight to her dignity.

Ginny laughed as the playful "Hey!" from the dining room was heard and Hermione was just thankful that the two were unaware of most of what she had been through over the past months.

Despite the distance of an ocean between them it always seemed that she couldn't hide when something bad at work had happened. They both knew she had been shot and flown to a hospital in Germany, an old curse breaker friend of Bill's had passed along the word, before starting her new job. When she had injured herself rescuing her team from the NID at Kyle's wedding they had found out when she had carelessly sent them pictures of the event and forgotten that her bruises were showing. She had managed to explain the event away as clumsiness by tripping over a stack of books, the shooting as surprising a grave robber on her dig site and the latest sprained ankle as a jogging injury.

As Hermione put the finishing touches on the meat, Harry helped to carry the platter into the dining room and held out her chair. The meal was very relaxed and Hermione found herself enjoying the company of her friends after being separated for so long. They talked about a variety of subjects from Quidditch, to the Weaselys, to their Hogwart's days, all while James entertained them with his antics.

Once James tired himself out, the day's events finally catching up with him, Ginny took the boy into the bedroom leaving them to move into the living room and Harry began to move the conversation onto a subject she knew he had been dancing around all night. "So, ah, this really is a nice place. Loads better than your last place."

Hermione couldn't help but smile at that. Her last place back in Cairo had been in an ancient building not too far from the university and her flat had been rather cramped at the best of times. "There was really no place to go but up, Harry."

A grin spread across her friend's face before giving way to a blush of embarrassment as he tried to make his next question seem nonchalant. "I guess working for the military pays better."

Remaining at ease, Hermione answered. "It does have its perks."

She could see the struggle in his eyes whether to continue his little interrogation or drop the topic. Curiosity eventually won out. "You've been kind of vague on exactly what it is you do for them. Why would the Muggle military need an archeologist? I know you're brilliant, but you didn't really study anything at school that would be important to them right?" She let him ramble before his voice took on a softer note. "I'm not trying to pry, but I just want to know that you're all right, that you haven't gotten in over your head."

In the past, her friends had let her get away with remaining ambiguous about her career path, but she knew that Harry would want answers during this visit. The fact that she had moved so far away and suddenly started a new career path without telling anyone much of anything must have been driving them crazy. Having anticipated this, Hermione had worked out a number of ways to keep her friends in the dark; the usual classified excuse wouldn't work on them considering their pasts.

Taking a sip of her drink, Hermione made sure to catch Harry's eyes. She had to do this just right otherwise her friend would never let the subject drop. "You know I can't tell you much." She waited for him to nod his head in understanding before continuing. "The military wasn't interested in the fact that I'm an archeologist, but my ability with languages."

"Yeah, but I'm sure that there are others who could-"

Rather than let him go on with whatever protest he had come up with, she cut him off. "Yes, there are many others with the same skills I have, but with modern language systems." She let that hang in the air for a moment and let him absorb what she was saying, letting him draw his own conclusions.

Frowning in thought Harry spoke to himself. "Why does the U.S. military need someone who can translate dead languages?" His head shot up as an idea struck him. "They aren't having you do anything with runes and stuff, are they?"

Caught off guard with the tangent, Hermione could only deny the charge. "No. No, why would you think..." Her brain finally kicked into gear. "Harry Potter, how dare you imply that I am helping the Muggle government find out about magic."

Her tone caused him to wince. "Sorry. I just...never mind. It was a stupid thought."

"It was." With a sigh of aggravation, Hermione proceeded with the previous subject. "The U.S. military wants my help in translations for the same reason they need modern translators." She waited for him to speak up with the answer; it would be better if he caught onto what she was saying, more believable if he worked it out on his own. At Harry's continued silence she finally clued him in. "Codes."

"Codes?" he echoed back, confusion still showing on his face.

Hermione resisted the urge to sigh again. Sometimes she forgot that while Harry grew up in the Muggle world like herself, his exposure to the realities of the world at large had been severely limited by growing up with his relatives. She hoped that his ignorance would be a benefit to her in this case, he wouldn't question everything the way her parents had done.

Feeling herself fall into familiar patterns as she used what the boy's had always termed her 'Professor' voice, she explained. "Muggle governments often use various codes in order to communicate information from one location to another. These codes are used to keep the information sent over radio a secret since anyone can pick up a signal from anyone else and the same goes for information sent through the computer and over phone lines. As is often the case, opposing governments try to continually crack each other's codes in order to gain the upper hand of a given situation. Therefore the more complex the code the harder it will be for anyone to crack. The U.S. government, as you can imagine, is particularly determined to keep its lines of communication secured."

Showing that he was following along, Harry spoke. "So you ah, help in creating these codes."

Seeing that he was accepting her explanation, she once again tried to reiterate what she had earlier been trying to convey. "I'm not saying anything, Harry. I just think that was an interesting fact, don't you?"

It took a moment for him to get it. "Right. That was very interesting." There was a beat of silence while Harry got his head sorted out. "I still don't understand. Why you specifically?"

Giving him a genteel smile, she responded. "I am one of the rising stars in the field, Harry." He chuckled at her in acknowledgment of the nod to her intellect. Casually she dropped the piece of information she hoped would grab his attention and rationalize everything. "I also inadvertently caught their attention because of my unusual background."

"What?!"

It was almost funny to see the expression of panic on her friend's face. "Apparently witness protection combined with a high IQ does wonders for a resume. Makes the whole question of whether one can keep state secrets a bit of a given."

He snorted at her attempt at humor. "I'm sure that's exactly what Percy and Arthur had planned."

"Hey! I'm just glad that my official history passed the background checks without any sort of problem." That would have been a nightmare that didn't bare thinking about.

The sound of the buzzer broke the mood and had Hermione struggling to get out of her comfortable chair to retrieve the cobbler in the oven: dessert was ready. Before she had the chance to escape the confines of the cushions, Harry was waving her to stay seated. "I've got it."

Falling back into the chair Hermione let her friend get out the finished dessert and fix up a few plates as Ginny came to join them. Settling into the living room, the old friends let themselves relax and enjoy each other's company as the sun set.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

After leaving Sam's house, Jack made his way back to the base to make a report to Hammond (the results of which he found dissatisfying) before heading down to update the rest of the team. Entering Daniel's office, he found the doctor hunched over his desk, playing with his rocks as usual while Teal'c sat off to the side looking bored, although it was hard to tell with the big guy.

Not even bothering to take his eyes off of his work Daniel spoke. "How's Sam?"

"Absolutely no evidence of her," he made air quotes, "secret friend."

Finally looking up from his work with a hint of irritation passing over his face, Daniel repeated his earlier inquiry. "How's Sam?"

Jack sighed before reluctantly answering. "Hammond recommended a psyche evaluation."

Grabbing their attention, Teal'c broke his previous silence. "Do you believe Major Carter has become mentally unstable?"

"No more than the rest of us." His quip did nothing to light the mood as both of the others got nearly identical looks on their faces as they got lost in deep thought. Taking charge of the conversation before one of them broke out of their meditations and started asking some unsettling questions Jack changed the subject. "What do you guys have?"

Daniel was the first to reply. "Well, it looks like that thing on 636 is a weapon."

Jack didn't even try to hide his surprise. "I was right?"

"It is a weapon of great power, O'Neill." Teal'c confirmed.

"Big and honkin'?" Jack made sure to check and clapped his hands together at Daniel's reluctant nod of assent. "Sweet."

He was ignored as the scientist continued in his lecture mode. "From what I'm able to decipher, the people on 636 were developing on about the same timeline as Earth. They had just discovered their Stargate when what they called the 'Threat from the skies' came."

"Goa'ulds?" Jack guessed, it was their standard MO.

"Yes; somehow they managed to build this incredible advanced weapon to defend themselves." Daniel said with a fair bit of admiration.

Feeling the need to nettle the archeologist a bit, he interjected. "Couldn't've been so advanced." Daniel gave him a pointed look. "The place was a disaster. It obviously didn't work."

Looking through his papers Daniel shook his head. "Well, actually it did. The monument beside the device tells the story of how they destroyed the threat from the skies, and the men who built the device were heroes."

"Which would explain why the Goa'uld did not take the weapon," added Teal'c, working out the logical reason the device had not been missing.

Jack didn't like the way the conversation was heading, he had a bad feeling all of the sudden. "Hey! I saw that planet! If the Goa'uld didn't get 'em, who did?"

"I'm not sure," said a puzzled Daniel.


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I still own nothing of Harry Potter or Stargate. Dialogue borrowed from the episode 'Acension.'

Chapter 9 Wednesday, part 3

Wednesday 8:39pm Mountain Time, Colorado Springs, Colorado

Sam spent the rest of her day, after being dragged to a mandatory psych evaluation, wandering aimlessly from room to room in her house trying to dispel her nerves. The constant monitoring of her colleagues was not as reassuring as she thought it would be. If the security cameras hadn't caught the being in the Gate room before, she didn't think they would be able to do so now and the last thing she needed was to be on tape talking to thin air. Thankfully after monitoring her home for the entire day with no results the team came in and removed the devises for the night to allow her some measure of privacy.

Forcibly turning her mind back onto the present, Sam prepared a simple dinner before retiring to the living room to watch some television. Entering the room she switched on the light only to find Orlin sitting in her chair waiting for her.

"I understand why you did it," was his pronouncement.

Sighing she didn't even react to his statement. "Of course, you would wait until they took the cameras away."

He continued on as if he hadn't heard her. "Military protocol. You would have jeopardized your job if you hadn't reported me."

"I just came from a psychological evaluation." Sinking into the chair across from him, she sent him a pointed look. "Do you understand what that means?"

Not reacting to the accusation in her tone, he promptly answered. "They think you're crazy."

"Am I?" the question was not directed at her visitor. Sam didn't know what was going on, but she felt like she was losing it and the being sitting across from her wasn't helping with his cryptic words.

Sensing her mood, Orlin tried to offer her a little comfort. "There were times on Velona where I thought I might be losing my mind."

Her attention was caught by the sadness in his voice and that he was finally speaking about something besides herself. Trying not to scare him off the subject she genteelly prompted him to continue, hoping to finally get some answers. "Velona?"

"Your planet refers to it as 636. I was there for hundreds of years by myself. The first time I saw you..." he trailed off and Sam could feel the heat in her face at the implications.

"Look..." She paused, unsure how to go on and looked away.

Orlin leaned forward in his seat and his voice took on a more serious tone. "Please. Let me finish." Sam turned at his tone. "My kind is capable of a level of communication that shares the innermost selves." The last word was not spoken aloud and instead echoed in Sam's head.

Her eyes widen and she spoke the first thought that entered her mind. "Telepathy."

"Reading someone's mind is an invasion of privacy. It's not about specific thoughts or memory. It's a sort of exchange of spirit," he said trying to ease her fears.

Sam stood up and stepped away to wrap her head around what she was learning. "So you did this 'sharing' thing on me."

He nodded in confirmation. "Unfortunately, you passed out. You must not have been prepared." Sam resisted the impulse to interrupt; of course she wasn't prepared to have a mind meld with an unknown alien and let out a sigh. Orlin chose to ignore her reaction. "But I did learn about you."

Wary. "What did you learn?"

"That you're a good person. That your heart is pure. That, on the inside, your spirit is as beautiful as you are on the outside." Orlin stated with complete sincerity.

She smiled and scoffed at his assertion. "All right!" It was really too much and Sam started to walk out of the room.

"Where are you going?" came the confused question.

Shaking her head in amusement she replied. "To get the Code 3 team back in here."

"I'll just hide again."

She paused and spun around angrily. "Ok, so what are you gonna do? Stalk me for the rest of my life?!"

In a very calming voice, which just proceeded to make her feel like a child being talked down to by an adult, Orlin explained. "Actually, I want you to let me try again. I think a human can handle it. I think you have to be well receptive."

In spite of herself she was intrigued by his theory, but refused to let it show. "Then will you go to the SGC and turn yourself in?"

"No, but I'll leave if you want."

"Will you actually be gone?" she had to make sure. Orlin seemed pretty harmless, but she didn't want to have to worry about him following her around all the time, especially if he continued to remain invisible to everyone else.

One psych evaluation was enough, thank you.

"I promise." It was hard not to believe his sincerity or the earnest expression on his face.

Resigned to her fate, she sighed. "Ok. What do I do?"

Pushing himself up from his seat in her chair he took a step toward her. "Stand there." She stood very still and held her breath not sure what to expect. A tingle of fear shot through her, but she held her ground as Orlin gently brought his hand up to hover near the sides of her face. "Open your mind to the possibility of an existence not governed by science which you hold so dear."

Evening her breathing. "How do I do that?"

"Just close your eyes, and-"

"Don't say 'Take it easy'," she said, exasperated. If one more person-

The expected response didn't come. "Relax," he coached instead and her eyes involuntarily closed in response to his soothing tone.

Taking a few deep breaths, Sam tried to slow her heart and let her mind clear of all thought. A sudden bright light blazed behind her eyelids grabbing her attention. Opening her eyes Sam found herself surrounded by light emanating from the figure before her, trapping her in the intensity of his gaze.

It was so beautiful. "Oh, My God."

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Staring at the ceiling, Harry studied the dancing shadows caused by the streetlights and tree branches moving in the wind, willing his mind to go to sleep. Even the familiar feel of Ginny curled up beside him and her gentle breathing wasn't enough to lull him into slumber. It wasn't that the bed wasn't comfortable or that he wasn't tired; he was. Rather, he couldn't stop thinking about the past, the present, his life, his choices, and the real reason he couldn't fall asleep: Hermione Granger.

Hermione Granger, the brightest witch of her generation, the one he could always rely on to know the answer, to fight for the underdog, to tell him the truth.

Hermione Granger his best friend, confidant, and sister.

Hermione Granger an almost virtual stranger.

A mystery wrapped up inside of an enigma.

When he had returned to the world of the living after the Final Battle, it hadn't taken him long to realize that the world had not stood still.

Three months and his world had changed without his knowledge. He was their hero again, the Boy-Who-Lived-to-Defeat-Voldemort yet he had never felt so helpless in his life. At first they had tried to keep it quiet, wanted him to recover a bit, but his incessant questions wore them down. His best-friend (Ron being his best-mate) had been declared a threat to Wizarding Society and no one had done a thing to stop it.

Actually that was rather unfair.

Percy had surprised everyone with his resignation from the Ministry and subsequent standing in as a lawyer for Hermione since she hadn't been able to find one with the surprise arrest the Ministry had sprung on her. The Order had been equally blindsided and hadn't been able to do a damn thing before her trial had begun to help her. Everyone had frankly just been just too disorganized and shocked to do anything before the Ministry steam rolled them.

It had all been so perfectly planned, it was amazing. Anyone with the authority to stop it couldn't: Kingsley, Moody, Dumbledore, Remus, and Tonks were dead; McGonagall was dying; he was in a bloody coma, and everyone else was basically out of commission. The Weasleys had been a mess with Arthur suffering from two broken legs and severe burns; Molly incapacitated with a curse that damaged her spine, Charlie still missing in the ruins of Hogwarts; Ron under constant monitoring for internal bleeding; and George on suicide watch with the death of his twin. Bill had tried to hold it together for everyone, but the strain had taken its toll. Ginny couldn't tell him much about those first weeks, she couldn't remember, and Bill later informed him she had to be put on calming draughts.

He had been furious with the Ministry, his friends and himself. It was his fault that this had happened, that they had targeted his friend. Everything she had done had been to protect him, help him in his quest to defeat Voldemort. Hermione wasn't a criminal, she wasn't some future Dark Lord in training; she was just doing what he wasn't prepared for or couldn't do and making enemies along the way. She was too brilliant for her own good and as Ron had once said it made her very scary.

In hindsight, Harry could see how that had made her a target of the old regime struggling in vain to win back the public's trust and trying to hide their inadequate efforts against Voldemort, knowing that their day of reckoning was coming. They couldn't discredit him, the public would never allow it this time, but Hermione the one who had distinguished herself as a major power in her own right; they could get to her. She was alone, vulnerable, and if past experience had taught her enemies anything, it wouldn't be long before she came after them.

His immediate efforts to storm the Ministry were put on hold; he couldn't even sit up straight, let alone walk. He tried proposing appeals to the courts and was ignored. He tried to use his despised fame for once to get the public to side with him, but after months of Ministry propaganda it fell on deaf ears. His friends worried and tried to keep his health from backsliding.

He was mad at everyone and no one. The whole situation just made him feel helpless.

He was mad at Hermione for not being there and himself for feeling that way.

Eventually he was proclaimed ready to leave St. Mungo's and managed to corner Minister Fudge into a meeting the result of which left him reeling. Rita and Umbridge had brainwashed him quite thoroughly, the man was convinced Hermione had been using him to defeat the competition for her own future rise to power. Appealing to his senses wasn't working and Harry attempted to flatter him with his celebrity only to be denied.

Thankfully, Arthur had been able to talk him down before he did something too rash. His surrogate father had cautioned restraint, pointed out that the last thing Hermione needed was him killing himself for her. Taking the advice, he joined Ron in one of his bi-weekly visits to Australia and placed his crusade aside for a bit.

Being around her helped him get things into perspective. The trio hadn't been whole since the Final Battle and he finally felt balanced again. Despite her rigorous schedule they took the time to have some fun and Harry let himself relax on the long stretches of peaceful beaches. In due time they talked about her exile and Harry realized just how much Hermione had been accomplishing on her own; it was slow progress, but her papers were circulating and causing the public to question themselves.

It was only time before she was vindicated.

Having everything put into perspective, Harry allowed himself to think of the situation objectively, realized that he needed to get his life together. He started Auror training after Hermione convinced him not to throw away the chance to do good just because of a few idiots in the Ministry; the idea was to change them from the inside.

Life started to make sense again.

Unfortunately, Ron and Hermione's relationship, which had barely started, came to an end; the travel made it too difficult to maintain. Ginny went back to what was left of Hogwarts for her seventh year, their relationship becoming stronger than ever. The others recovered, life moved on.

Then Hermione announced her intentions to drop her appeals. She couldn't spend her life waiting on some whim of the Ministry, she needed to move on, make a life for herself in the Muggle world. They all tried to stop her, but she was adamant. The Wizarding World held too many bad memories for her. She couldn't split her time with a fight that she wasn't sure she wanted to win. She was happy with her new life. Couldn't they be happy for her too?

What could he do? He argued, he fought, but she wanted to move on. After everything he was left with no choice but to respect her wishes. Deep down Harry knew that she didn't mean what she said, something had happened and she was trying to help them move on without her. She never tried to stop his efforts in her name. She wouldn't fight for herself.

He needed answers.

_For months he had ignored the summons, not sure if he was ready to face whatever his mentor, no, his manipulator had to say, but he couldn't resist the call any longer. With equal parts dread and anticipation he waited for the stone gargoyle to move._

_Traveling up to the Headmaster's Office Harry couldn't help, but recall the first time he had been there with Dumbledore himself. It was still the Headmaster's Office, Professor McGonigall having never recovered from the injuries she had received defending her students to the last, the post had moved on to the next in line: Professor Flintwick._

_It was the former Charms Professor Harry met as the winding staircase came to a stop._

"_Welcome, Mr. Potter, he has been expecting you." He barely acknowledged the man as his gaze was caught by the portrait on the wall sending him an oh-so-familiar smile. Flitwick, noticing that he didn't have Harry's undivided attention, politely excused himself. "I will let the two of you have a moment to talk."_

_Feeling bad about driving the man from his own office Harry protested. "No really, Professor, it's alright I wouldn't-"_

"_No need, Mr. Potter, I understand." Flitwick sent him a smile before departing through another door._

_The sound of the door clicking shut was followed by silence as the two studied each other before the portrait spoke. "Hello, Harry."_

_Trying to decide what to say, Harry opened his mouth only to shut it, then open it again. Nothing came to his mind. What could he say to the man who had guided him for so many years, the closest thing he had ever had to a grandfather, a man who had sent him off to his death? Unable to form words the silence stretched before a voice rang out though the room causing the Boy-Who-Lived to freeze._

"_As much as I am enjoying this very touching reunion, I ask that you do shut your mouth, Potter, before you catch any flies. The sight of you gaping like a fish is not something I wish to see."_

_His teeth rattled as his mouth snapped shut in automatic reflexes to that voice. Turning his head to the side Harry caught sight of the portrait of his scowling former Potion's Professor._

"_B-but how-"_

_Seeing the reaction his presence caused the portrait's sneer turned vindictive. "It seems your intelligence is as lacking as ever. Despite the somewhat dubious circumstances surrounding my promotion to the position I was the acknowledged Headmaster of this school at the time of my demise."_

"_Severus, leave the boy alone," came Dumbledore's request before turning his attention back to Harry. "You have questions. What would you like to know?"_

_He really didn't want to have this discussion now, the emotions were still too raw, but the subject had been brought up and Harry couldn't contain his fury any longer. "How long? How long did you know what I was?" The Headmaster's look of sympathy only fueled his rage. "How long?"_

_Resigned Dumbledore spoke. "Your fourth year. I didn't know Tom had created them until after I examined the diary. I suspected he made more Horcruxes. It would be just the thing he would have done, but I had no proof. Those memories that we examined together were gathered in those days. I was trying to figure out how many he could have made and the possible locations of the things to destroy them. My hope was to free you of the burden, prevent Tom from ever regaining his body, the prophecy could have faded into obscurity. Then you, Harry, you told me of the dreams. Your connection with Voldemort's mind, the pain in your scar, your use of Parseltongue, it all made sense. Fifth year only confirmed my worst fears. Tom had unwillingly made you the last key to his survival. Even if I could destroy all of his creations, there would still be you."_

_Unable to continue the portrait fell silent and looked away in pain. Harry felt some of his anger deflate. It had been an impossible situation, he couldn't know what he would have done in the same circumstances. He hated that he had left in ignorance, trailing after breadcrumbs, but it had been necessary. Voldemort could not discover their connection unwillingly and it was best for his own mental well-being that the truth had come out only at the very end._

"_I make no apologies, Harry. I did what I thought was best and I understand your anger. A cruel fate was placed on your shoulders. I only hope that one day you will be able to forgive me."_

_Looking at the portrait Harry stared at the old man and came to a decision. He couldn't blame the Headmaster, but he still felt the sting of hurt, it would take time. "One day." The tension in the room slowly seeped away after his announcement, but Harry still had something to say, the reason he had come to see Dumbledore's portrait. It had been a month since Hermione had declared she would stop her petitions to the Ministry and he hadn't come up with a single new idea since then to help her. Without her brains to rely on, Harry was faltering; so he had decided to face the one man he thought might provide him with an answer, despite his reservations. "Actually, Professor, the reason I came here today was not to talk about the past, but ask for your help with a problem I have."_

_Concerned, Dumbledore leaned forward. "Of course, Harry. What do you need?"_

"_It's about Hermione; she-"_

_Waving his explanation aside he spoke. "My boy, I'm already well aware of the travesty to befall the girl, Flitwick has kept us well informed of the recent activity of the Ministry and the propaganda of the Daily Prophet."_

_Feeling a flare of hope Harry took a step forward. "Professor, you must have some idea on how to help her."_

_His expression turned to one of regret. "Harry, as much as I wish to help you, I fear this is beyond my abilities. You must understand that I'm not Dumbledore, I'm just a portrait, a shade of the real man. I can give you advice I'm sure your friends have already given you, but no more than that. Facing off against the Ministry is something that requires a body, something I no longer possess."_

_He felt like punching something. "But surely you could do something. They're making her out to be the next Dark Lord in training. All Hermione has ever done is try to help me, help others any way she can."_

_Obviously deciding he had been quite long enough Snape spoke up. "Yes, and the little chit has been skirting the line for years."_

_Furious, Harry shouted at the man. "What?! What are you talking about? Hermione has done-"_

_The figure in the portrait glared at Harry before cutting him off. "Everything in her power to make sure that you were protected and prepared to face the Dark Lord." At this point he turned to face Dumbledore's portrait. "The perfect little pawn to make sure you were where you needed to be, Potter, at just the right time. Protecting you and making enemies along the way."_

"_Severus, please-" Dumbledore tried to intervene._

"_No. Albus, you need to hear this along with Potter. Miss Granger became what you made her, a witch of extreme intelligence and ability with the will to do anything for her friends. Of course someone would come after her." Said the scowling Snape._

_Dumbledore frowned at his fellow portrait. "Hard decisions had to be made, it is regrettable Miss Granger has been punished for those choices, but with the support of her friends I'm sure the situation will resolve itself." _

"_She has stopped fighting to come back." Harry explained with clenched fists, furious with both paintings. "She says there are too many bad memories for her here and that she can't hold on to the past if she is going to make a future for herself."_

"_Why would she want to come back?" questioned Snape with a scoff only to be ignored._

_Finally looking worried Dumbledore leaned forward looked at Harry. "Miss Granger told you she wished to remain in the Muggle world?"_

"_Yes. She doesn't want to waste time splitting her attention between fighting the Ministry and readjusting to the Muggle world," confirmed Harry._

"_That doesn't seem very in character for her." Harry waited while the cogs whirled away in the Headmaster's head; it was the exact thought he had. "Miss Granger always seemed to me to be one to take up any cause she could."_

"_And what cause do you want her to take up, Albus?" interrupted Snape's voice, dragging Harry's attention away from Dumbledore._

_Despite the respect he now held for the man, Harry couldn't help, but let his old contempt for the man surface in the glare he sent his way. "What are you talking about?"_

_Snape snapped back. "Albus Dumbledore never says anything without a reason, his portrait is still trying to pull strings even now." Harry was ignored once again as the man addressed his former employer. "She is no longer your pawn, she never fully was, you meddling old-fool. You are afraid of her, you saw the summoning she did in this very office and you are not going to do a single thing to help her come back. You can't predict what she would do or be capable of, you were too busy making your plans to defeat Riddle that you never saw her coming. She has her own destiny, one far greater that Potter's continuing sidekick. I, for one, see this exile as a great opportunity without Potter or Weasley dragging her down, she will finally be able to come into her own.'_

_Confused by most of what Snape was alluding to Harry ignored the disturbing implications and made one of his mental leaps. "Is that why you left her everything? I thought you didn't like her."_

_His scowl turned into a smirk. "I dislike the annoying know-it-all who refused to think outside of helping you survive your own foolishness. The woman she is to become will move beyond that. Even if she never steps foot in my home, my vault will help pay for the Muggle education she will receive and my other gifts will issue her survival. Miss Granger is far from finished."_

To this day Harry still hadn't puzzled out the cryptic comment.

With a huff of frustration Harry got out of bed and made his way into the kitchen to fix a glass of warm milk. As he passed Hermione's office and makeshift bedroom he couldn't help, but overhear her speaking on the phone. The words didn't make any sense to him, some foreign language of some sort.

He shook his head in exasperation. It looked like his friend was still a workaholic, probably using her free time to help some school friend halfway around the world with a translation.


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: I own nothing of the Harry Potter or Stargate worlds. Dialogue is borrowed from the episode 'Acension.'

Chapter 10 Thursday, part 1

Thursday 5:15am Colorado Springs, Colorado

Standing in the Gate room as the wormhole opened, Daniel let himself for just a moment enjoy the simple beauty of the sight, something he really hoped he never wearied of. His reprieve was interrupted by the silent figure emerging out of the event horizon. It was rather early in the day for a visitor to arrive, but the base was always at full man-power no matter the hour. It was a necessity when dealing with the differences of time zones of other worlds and the SGC had become rather used to meetings and missions taking place at the most unusual times.

Master Bra'tac made his way down the ramp accompanied by his usual clanking footfalls and stopped in front of Teal'c. The two bowed toward the other. "It is good to see you, Teal'c."

"Master Bra'tac," intoned Teal'c. Though he didn't show it often Daniel could see the deep respect for his old mentor his friend held and the same expression being mirrored by the older man.

Done with greeting his former apprentice, the venerable Jaffa turned toward the other man, piercing him with an intense stare. "DanielJackson." The scrutiny was short lived as he continued down the line of awaiting guests. "ColonelO'Neill."

"Hey, Bra'tac. Nice to see that you are...well, you." The attempted humor was thankfully left unfinished as Jack kept himself restrained at a pointed look from General Hammond, although Daniel thought it was more likely he just realized the Jaffa wouldn't get whatever the punch line was.

With a hint of a smile in his eyes Bra'tac turned toward the General. "And Hammond of Texas; it is an honor."

"Greetings, Master Bra'tac. Thank you for joining us. I'm sure Teal'c has informed you of the situation," stated Hammond as he began to lead the group up to the conference room.

"The Jaffa children, yes. His message explained their circumstances and requested that the Free Jaffa give them refuge." Entering the room, everyone took their seats and Bra'tac continued. "We are willing to shelter the children and I have already found several families willing to take some in."

"What about the others?" asked Daniel, leaning forward in his chair.

"The older ones will have the chance to begin apprenticeships," explained the older Jaffa.

"All of them?" questioned Daniel.

At the confusion apparent on Bra'tac's face, Teal'c clarified. "DanielJackson would like to know whether the females will be given the opportunity to train as well." Bra'tac's eye rose at the inquiry. "Kar'yn, the leader of the group, has expressed a desire to learn."

Daniel watched as the two warriors held a silent conversation with their eyes. As it ended Bra'tac, turned his focus back to the room at large and answered the previous question. "Anyone with the skill and patience to learn will be accepted amongst the Free Jaffa."

Breaking the awkward tension in the room Jack spoke up. "So, ah, now that that is all settled when can you take the rug-rats off our hands? Not that they aren't welcome or anything; it just would be kind of nice to have them out from everyone's feet." Hiding a smile at his friend's query Daniel couldn't help but recall the incident the other day that had succeeded in souring Jack's mood toward the youngsters.

Normally his teammate loved kids, but apparently not ones who ate all the Jell-O and cake on the base after Janet had confiscated all the toys in his office for their use. Jack hated being left with nothing left to do but paperwork.

"I can take the children in a few hours time, but first I would like to hear more about what you have found out about Nut's activities," pronounced Bra'tac.

General Hammond took the chance to take rein of the meeting. "Most of what we have learned has been through the assistance of Ka'ryn. I believe it would be best to ask her join us."

Inclining his head at the assessment, Bra'tac spoke. "I agree, Hammond of Texas, it would be best if the girl was here."

As Hammond directed one of the airmen to escort the girl to the room, Jack and Teal'c quickly outlined what had been found out. A knock on the door interrupted the discussion and Ka'ryn was directed into the room.

As she was clad in some borrowed BTUs, Daniel was struck by just how young she really was. The young warrior-woman that Hermione had introduced the day before looked like a lost teenage girl in the unfamiliar uniform. That assessment changed as Daniel witnessed her catch sight of Master Bra'tac for the first time, and the same fierce expression from the previous day crossed her face.

"Thank you for coming, Ka'ryn, please have a seat." The girl slid into one of the chairs. "Ka'ryn, I would like you to meet Master Bra'tac of the Free Jaffa. He has agreed to let you and the others take shelter amongst his people."

The girl didn't say anything and only inclined her head as Bra'tac spoke. "The Free Jaffa would be pleased to allow both you and those in your care to join us, Ka'ryn." Some of the tension eased out of her frame at his words; obviously whatever message Teal'c had communicated to his mentor had been understood.

Daniel was pleased to note that with the girl in a more agreeable mood the rest of the meeting continued smoothly. They discussed Nut, but nothing new was found out and the discussion was eventually pushed aside for another day while Bra'tac explained more of what was to be expected for the children. Once the meeting concluded, Daniel was able to slip out with plenty of time to get some work in before Jack dragged him off the base for the day. They all were working half a day because of the holiday and Jack wanted him well rested before they went over to Janet's for Thanksgiving dinner that night.

After all it would ruin all his fun if Daniel ended up sleeping through the game again, like last year.

Settling back into his desk chair Daniel caught himself before he could become engrossed in his latest task and quickly grabbed the phone. Even if she had been kicked off the base yesterday and had today off, someone needed to update Hermione on Bra'tac's arrival. Her call the other night had basically informed him of the consequences he would face if she wasn't told.

The last thing he needed was a repeat of the coffee incident.

Dialing the number to his fellow archaeologist he paused before changing his mind. Disconnecting the line he began to punch in the numbers to Sam's place instead. It would be best if he had a ride to the base already arranged before he called Hermione and he knew Sam would be stopping by today for a few hours to check on her experiments. After all the two needed to work out their differences at some point and smirking Daniel thought a little pay-back was in order.

No one messed with his coffee.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

She would like to say that Daniel's call woke her, but she would be lying to herself. Hermione had once again not given into the desire to have a lay-in during her day off and was instead in the kitchen preparing to bake up a storm.

Grabbing the cordless, she answered the phone before the ringing could wake the other inhabitants of her flat. "Granger."

"Hermione, it's Daniel. I was just calling to tell you Bra'tac arrived and will be taking the children this afternoon."

Immediately she began to make plans. "I'll be right in. Let me just make a few calls to see if I can get a ride up to the mountain."

The laughter made her pause. "Don't worry about it. I already arranged for someone to pick you up. They'll be by in about fifteen. See ya soon." Before she could respond he hung up leaving Hermione to wonder just what Daniel was up to.

Fifteen minutes and one hastily written note later, Hermione found herself perched on the curb in front of her building waiting for her mystery ride. The SUV which pulled up was unfamiliar to her, but the occupant had her suppressing a groan; Major Samantha Carter was not someone she would choose to see first thing in the morning. The hostility which had pervaded their earlier acquaintance was gone, but that didn't mean they were exactly friends.

"Good morning, doctor," greeted the Major as she jumped out of the car to help Hermione load her crutches into the back and get into the passenger seat.

Buckling her seat belt, Hermione returned the salutation. "Good morning, Major. Thank you for coming all this way."

"No problem. I was heading up to the mountain to check on a few things I didn't have time to wrap up before my leave started the other day," commented the Major, brushing aside her worries and tactfully ignoring the fact that Hermione knew the real reason she had the other day off.

The ride was a silent affair and Hermione made sure to keep her attention focused on the passing scenery to avoid the atmosphere of the car. After a few minutes she noticed that they were traveling in the opposite direction and spoke up. "Where are we going?"

Carter gave her a strained smile and answered. "I just realized I forgot my credentials back at the house. It will only take a minute." Giving a nod of understanding Hermione wondered why the other woman was so tense.

Not ever having been to the Major's house before Hermione took in the surroundings. The house was a single story, white and had an impressive front yard. Hermione vaguely recalled Janet mentioning the Major was a motorcyclist, but she didn't see the bike anywhere around. Pulling into the driveway Carter shut off the engine and walked into the house. For a moment Hermione thought she caught sight of someone by the window before the draperies slid shut.

Time ticked by and Hermione waited for the Major to return. When she still hadn't shown up several minutes later Hermione maneuvered herself out of the vehicle, seized her crutches and went looking.

Leaving through the open door Hermione found herself standing in a tastefully decorated living room with no sign of the Major. The sound of voices coming from the back of the house caught her attention; curious, she followed the noise wondering who else was with the Major.

"_...I don't understand why you are acting this way. She is my colleague."_

"_You have no idea what she is capable of."_

"_Why are you saying that? What are you hiding? Answer me."_

An uneasy feeling held Hermione back, cautioning her not to reveal herself just yet. Peering into the room she spotted a man talking to Major Carter, he was clearly agitated with the line of questioning and kept pacing. They were talking about her, but why? What did this stranger think he knew?

"Oh my God! You're scared of her, aren't you?" came Carter's startled revelation.

The silence stretched until the man spoke again. "It's complicated. It has to do with my people's history..." He froze as if suddenly catching her scent and swung around to face her. "Hello, Dr. Granger."

At his greeting Hermione stepped into the room revealing herself to Major Carter, who looked shocked at her presence. Finally able to catch a better look at the man, Hermione recognized him as the person she had seen in the infirmary before she passed out, the one she had convinced herself was a drug induced hallucination. The thing that she instinctively felt was a threat. Taking a defensive approach to the conversation she spoke. "Hello again. I'm sorry, but you seem to have me at a disadvantage, Mr..." she trailed off waiting for him to fill in the blank.

"Orlin," was the terse reply.

Before she could continue her interrogation the Major stepped forward. "Wait a sec. You've seen him before?" Confused, Hermione nodded at the strange question. At her affirmation Carter swung her gaze toward Orlin. "I thought you refused to reveal yourself to anyone but myself." Turning back to Hermione, she asked another question. "When did you see him?"

Watching the other woman, Hermione could see her frustration and confusion. "At the infirmary the other day before I passed out." Not willing to reveal her suspicion that he was the cause of her collapse she continued. "I thought he was a hallucination." Hermione's brain began to catch up and she made a mental leap. "He's an alien, right?"

Hermione met the Major's scrutinizing gaze before the woman nodded, seemingly willing to trust her with this secret. Focusing her gaze back on Orlin, Carter disregarded her earlier question in favor of the new puzzle that had been placed before her. "How is that possible? Why can she see you when others can't? Is that why you are scared of her?"

Ignoring the Major, he pierced Hermione with a look that had her gripping her crutches in fear and an overwhelming urge to attack the stranger. "Why are you here?" he questioned.

Staring into his unsmiling face she knew that this being somehow saw through her, knew what she was, knew that she was a witch. Despite her curiosity, there was no way she was willing to risk having this conversation in front of a woman who Hermione knew still harbored suspicions about herself. "I was concerned about the Major, she was taking too long."

He studied her and she could see that he too didn't want to discuss this in front of Carter either, but his need for answers outweighed that emotion. His eyes bore into her, waiting for her to break, but she refused to give in. "Who are you?"

Another question full of underlying meanings. Refusing to play his game she threw his question right back at him. "Who are you?" Silence met her query and before he could try to take control of the conversation again she pinned him with another. "What is it you think you know about me? You know why I can see you."

"I know many things, Dr. Granger, and you still haven't answered my questions." She noticed that he didn't deny her earlier charge, but seem determined to keep his secrets.

"You haven't answered mine," shot back Hermione. "Unless you do so I have no wish to continue this," Hermione pointed out, annoyed with the whole situation and unwilling to be forced to interact with someone who could potentially cause her careful construct to crumble. Turning toward Carter she addressed the other woman. "When you are finished, I'll be in the car."

Walking out of the room Hermione didn't wait for the Major to object and went back to the SUV content to let the pair argue some more. Not even two minutes later Carter jumped into the vehicle releasing an aggravated sigh, threw something in the back and slammed the door. Turning to address, Hermione she spoke. "I'm not sure I understand what happened in there, but thank you for not calling the base."

Accepting the apology Hermione tried to lighten the mood. "You did mention he refused to be seen by anyone else. I figured that calling in a team wouldn't work."

Carter snorted. "You're right. They came by yesterday and couldn't find anything."

"Lovely," the sarcasm was plain to both.

Carter started the car and recommenced their previous route. After a few moments the Major felt the need to break the silence. "He didn't tell me anything."

Feeling her body tense Hermione willed herself to relax; this was not the time to fall apart. "What is there to tell? He obviously thinks he knows something about me that he refuses to share."

Not sure if her nonchalant answer would work she waited for the other woman to verbalize all of her previous suspicions. The Major however refused to speak until they were pulling into the base. Shutting off the engine, she let out a sigh. "Look, Dr. Granger. I know that we haven't really gotten along in the past and I know the fault mostly rests with me, but until I learn otherwise I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt. I don't know if Orlin is being honest, if you really are a threat or he just doesn't like that you can somehow see him. Whether you know the reasons for this or not, I'm not sure. You are hiding something, but so am I so I can't really complain. You haven't done anything in the past for me to question your judgment and until my strange alien visitor explains himself I'm going to trust you."

Surprised by the Major's decision she blurted out the first thing that popped into her head. "It's Hermione."

Quirking her eyebrow the Major offered her hand. "Sam."

Taking the offered hand they shook completing their introductions. As Sam climbed out of the SUV Hermione spoke up knowing that if she wanted this new friendship to last she had to say something now. "Sam." Gaining the woman's attention she continued. "There are many things about myself that I keep hidden and that I probably will never be able to tell you, but I promise that I'm not here to harm anyone. I honestly don't know what Orlin knows and can only ask you to keep an open mind. He thinks I'm potentially dangerous, I know that he is." She could feel it in her very bones. "He has evaded everyone, but us on the base and you only because he wanted to. Please just remember that he's powerful and we still don't know all he is capable of."

She waited for Sam to react to her statement, knowing it was a lot to ask for. "I know. I promise to watch myself, but I need to do this my own way." Hermione nodded acceptance and climbed out of the car as Sam came around to help get her crutches. As they walked toward the mountain the Major spoke once more. "I hope that one day you will let me in."

Contemplating the request Hermione could only vocalize her own hope. "I would like that."

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Dropping Hermione off at the infirmary to speak with the Jaffa children staying there, Sam went in search of her prey. Not even bothering with his office she stalked the halls and spotted him as she rounded a corner on the way to the gym. "Colonel!"

Turning at the sound of her voice he answered with a hint of irritation as he continued to walk away. "Yeah?"

Hurrying to catch him Sam began to speak. "Sir," she paused to calm herself and use a more respectful tone. Lifting her hand she directed Jack's attention to the camera clutched in her hand, the reason she had rushed back to her house this morning. "Look at this."

Confused. "So?"

"So it was in my house." Obviously he wasn't getting it since he kept walking; either that or he did and was trying to avoid her. "The code 3 team is supposed to take away their equipment when they left...no more cameras, no more listening devices..."

"So they forgot one, Carter."

He won't meet her eyes and Sam couldn't help but press. "Are you sure?"

Reaching for the door Jack tried to get away, but Sam beat him to it and stood blocking his path. Heaving a sigh Jack reluctantly answered. "No."

"Sir." At the muffled damn she heard under his breath Sam knew she had him. "Is the SGC secretly keeping tabs on me?"

"Secretly?" joked the Colonel.

Not sure if he was making fun of her or trying to play dumb Sam continued her interrogation. "Colonel, I did my duty in reporting the alien encounter, and now everyone thinks I'm crazy."

Jack glanced beyond her at the door uncomfortably. "Look, Carter, here's the bottom line...no one is seeing what you've seen. And until that happens, we're all gonna think you're nuts!"

Resisting the urge to correct him, knowing that if their fragile trust was to survive she needed to keep quiet about Hermione being able to see the alien. Sam took another calming breath. "Sir...purely hypothetically, as my Superior Officer, if this alien did show himself to me again..."

She waited for him to catch on, which he did. "Did it?"

"I'm just saying." She resisted the urge to smile. "If the alien had the ability and desire to show himself only to me." Jack shifted awkwardly. "It would probably be better if I gathered as much information as I could, possibly even found a way of isolating it. Before I...officially...reported it again, right?"

Jack was silent and she let him think. "Probably. Yes." Nodding at the door he said. "I gotta pee."

Stepping aside she let Jack rush into the restroom. "Yes, sir."


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I still own nothing of Harry Potter or Stargate. Some dialogue borrowed from the episode 'Acension.' All OC's belong to me.

Chapter 11 Thursday, part 2

Thursday 7:59am Mountain Time Colorado Springs, Colorado

Bra'tac stood off to the side of the room studying his new charges when he felt Teal'c step up beside him. "They seem to be ready."

Nodding gravely, Teal'c observed, "Children are remarkably resilient. This group more than most."

His gaze was draw to Ka'ryn at his companion's words. In their short acquaintance, Bra'tac had seen what his former student had: the girl was a spirit who would make a fine warrior if her anger did not destroy her. As he watched, the girl joined the woman entering the room on a pair of crutches and was momentarily surprised to see them embrace. Not letting his face show his shock, Bra'tac arched a brow at his fellow Jaffa in question.

Teal'c obviously wasn't fooled, but let it pass. "Hermione Granger is a member of SG-11, the ones responsible for the rescue."

Inclining his head at the information, Bra'tac went back to studying the pair. Most of the staff at the SGC were unfamiliar to him beyond SG-1, but he had heard about the new archaeologist through his student's interactions. He knew of their training sessions and her interest in Jaffa culture which seemed to go beyond the usual surface details.

"I would like to introduce myself," stated Bra'tac as he ambled forward to meet the woman, followed by Teal'c. Approaching the pair, he couldn't help but overhear the last part of their conversation.

"Now don't forget that if you ever need to talk I'm just a quick trip away," Hermione Granger reminded the girl.

"I understand," answered Ka'ryn.

Smiling, the older woman handed her something. "These are for you." The girl opened the pouch and retrieved a small set of metal disks resembling stars. Frowning in confusion the girl looked at the doctor for an answer. "They are throwing stars, an archaic weapon from the islands of Japan here on Earth. They were used in stealth fighting because of their small size and easy ability to be hidden." Picking up one she demonstrated the movements, but didn't let it loose. "A perfect weapon for a woman. An old friend gave them to me and now I'm giving them to you."

The girl's face lit up at her words and a blush spread across her cheeks. "Thank you."

Choosing that moment to announce his presence, Bra'tac spoke. "A thoughtful gift, HermioneGranger."

At his words the woman in question turned her attention to him and quickly glanced at Teal'c before speaking. "Master Bra'tac, I assume."

He inclined his head. "I see my student has mentioned me."

"Not just your student. Both Daniel and Colonel O'Neill have quite a lot to say," she replied. At his lifted eyebrow, she elaborated. "Only good, I promise," but the humor in her gaze had him suppressing a chuckle. She was a spitfire.

Addressing Ka'ryn, he spoke. "You have a very generous benefactor."

She nodded in agreement and Bra'tac knew not to expect more. Teal'c had discussed the girl at length in the message he sent to the Free Jaffa and Bra'tac knew his assessment was correct. The girl was combative, her childhood and the kidnapping obviously having made her deeply distrustful of anyone in authority. Yet she was drawn to this Tauri woman, as was his former student; very interesting.

Deciding to move the conversation on, Bra'tac spoke. "Perhaps we might make our way to the Chappai. We are scheduled to depart in several minutes."

"Lead the way," came HermioneGranger's response as Ka'ryn began to round up the others.

Reaching the Chappai, Bra'tac bid farewell to his former student and watched as Ka'ryn once again embraced the doctor before joining him on the ramp. The wormhole activated with a gentle kwoosh and Bra'tac led the youngsters through the portal.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Thursday 10:02am Mountain Time Colorado Springs, Colorado

Ginny looked up from her position on the sofa at the sound of the door slamming shut as Hermione entered the room. Smiling at her friend she gave a little wave as the other woman stumbled into the flat. "Hey, we got your note." She gestured toward the dining room table where Hermione had left a note that morning while they were still sleeping explaining her absence. "Harry took James out to the park around the corner, the news says it will probably rain later."

"Alright. Uh, sorry about earlier one of my colleagues is going away on an assignment. The departure date was moved up," explained a sheepish Hermione.

"That's fine. I understand; being married to an Auror, it's to be expected," commented Ginny. She was rather use to the late night emergency calls and crazy hours after the past few years. "Why don't you grab a cuppa and relax for a bit."

Looking torn, Hermione noted, "I'm not sure if I have the time. I need to start getting everything ready for tonight."

Waving away her concern Ginny explained. "Don't worry about it. The dough for the bread is rising, and the pie crust is already made." Alarm flashed across Hermione's face and, feeling slightly put out, Ginny elaborated. "Don't worry, Harry did the work."

"I'm sorry, Ginny," said a contrite Hermione.

She relented with a sigh. "No hard feelings; I know I'm not to be trusted around Muggle appliances." Ginny knew that after almost destroying her friend's flat in Paris it was a reasonable fear. "Anyway, why don't you sit down, we haven't really had a chance to have any girl talk with Harry around." Ginny could tell Hermione was debating the pros and cons of her request so she put on her best puppy-dog face. "Come on, you know you want to."

With a huff of frustration she plopped down onto the sofa. "Fine."

Excited, Ginny leaned forward, pinning her friend with a mischievous look. "So, are there any hot blokes on that base of yours?"

"Ginny!" shrieked a mortified Hermione.

"That's a yes then." She giggled and rubbed her hands together. "So who is it who has caught Miss Granger's eye? Some young impressionable soldier, a linguist with a skilled tongue, or maybe you have found yourself a very helpful neighbor." With each word her friend turned redder and clutched a pillow as if it would protect her from the inquisition. Jostling the other woman Ginny repeated her plea. "Come on, you can tell me."

"Fine, fine," burst out Hermione. "Maybe there are some interesting gentlemen around, but I work with them. It would be unprofessional to do anything more. Besides, what would they see in plain old me?" The last was said quietly showing her embarrassment.

Ginny rolled her eyes exasperated, her friend tended to be oblivious to her effects on the opposite gender, which had only increased over the years, given her more active lifestyle. "Honestly, Hermione, you are oblivious to your own hotness. Now back to the topic at hand, if you don't give me the juicy details I'm going to have to hurt you." Hermione continued to hold her silence; Ginny threw her hands up, frustrated, and pouted. "You're no fun. Can't you tell me anything? Pleaseee!" The last word was stretched into a whine.

"Maybe there is somebody," said a reluctant Hermione with a sigh.

"Oh, you have got to tell me now," Ginny demanded.

Blushing, Hermione continued. "I don't even know if he sees me that way. He is so-"

At that moment the door burst open and Harry strode in with James laughing hysterically. "Hey, girls."

Before Ginny could do anything Hermione took the opportunity to jump out of her seat, effectively ending the conversation. "I should really be getting everything ready for this evening."

"You are not getting away with that, Hermione Granger, this conversation is not finished," Ginny threatened her curly haired friend.

Hermione didn't even bother to respond and Ginny flopped back on the sofa frustrated with her lack of answers. As a way to vent some of her pent up anger she turned and glared at her wayward husband, blaming him for her lack of answers. Knowing that he had somehow upset her, but not knowing how his face took on an adorably confused look. "What?"

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Thursday 5:16pm Mountain Time Colorado Springs, Colorado

Taking a sip of beer, Scott stood vigil over the grill, basting the bird and checking the thermometer to see if it was done yet. It had started raining earlier, but thankfully the deck lights provided the area with plenty of illumination and the space heaters even allowed the outdoor patio to stay comfortably warm despite the season.

It was the perfect spot for him to hangout and hide from the Thanksgiving craziness inside his house. Ever since Claire's sister, brother-in-law, kids and aunt had arrived earlier the house had gone nuts. The kids had taken to running circles around the house causing havoc everywhere they turned, the sisters had isolated themselves in the kitchen arguing as Aunt Beatrice told them how they should be doing things; Robert, like himself, was trying to stay under the radar and watch the game.

"So how is it, hon?" came a shout from the house.

Angling his head toward the direction of the holler, Scott spotted his wife leaning against the sliding glass door waiting for an answered. "It's almost finished, I'd say about thirty more minutes, babe." Just enough time for the last of their guests to get in. At his words Claire gave him a thumbs-up before going back to whatever task she still had to do.

An arm swung round his shoulder. "How's it going, my fearless leader?"

Freeing himself from his second in command, Scott spoke. "Good to see that you made it on time for once, Blake."

"You wound me, sir," answered the Captain, grasping his chest in an over dramatic gesture.

Ignoring the flamboyant moves, Scott glanced around before addressing the man. "So who did you con into coming this time?" He well remembered last year's fiasco with the barely legal coed his bachelor friend had brought along. At Blake's reluctance, Scott prodded further. "Don't tell me you ended up coming stag."

Scoffing, he replied. "Don't worry, sir. As if a man of my caliber could ever not find a date, and it's not like I would ever disappoint Claire." Scott sent him a small smirk knowing his wife's temperament and meddlesome matchmaking ways. To his amusement Blake looked a bit sheepish before finally breaking the silence. "Uh, well, sir, I believe you've met her before. You remember Gabby, uh, Sergeant Britt's ex."

How could he forget the recently ex-Mrs. Britt, the woman who had turned an officer's party into the perfect cautionary tale against alcohol?

Shaking his head at his friend's actions, Scott ran a hand through his hair. "I'm not even going to ask. Just keep her away from...well everything really."

"Yeah, sir." Nodding his head toward the house, Blake shared his observation. "So ah, it looks like Granger and her entourage are here too."

His attention was caught by the news and Scott turned around to get a better look at the group converging on the other side of the sliding glass door. Granger stood there balanced on her crutches as a man with some of the messiest hair he had ever seen stood off to the side bogged down by a pile of food and a red-head gal clutched a toddler. He could see his wife was already descending on them in her full hostess-mode.

"Jesus Christ! How much did she bake?" exclaimed Blake whistling as an equally weighed down Eric came into the room. Scott remembered his son volunteering to pick up the doctor since she couldn't drive herself and her guests apparently weren't comfortable driving on the right side of the road.

Feeling his lip twitch in amusement, Scott said, "What did you expect, man? Granger never does anything by halves and, as much as I love the woman, you know that my wife must have taken full advantage."

They had known each other long enough that Blake understood his wife's usual craziness around the holidays. As they watched, the group inside began to break apart with the arrival of Kyle and his new wife, Mary. As Claire began to hustle the woman toward the kitchen the men drifted apart from the pack, lingering in the front room.

Clapping his hands together, Blake's face took on a look of barely suppressed glee. "It looks like now is the perfect time to greet our fellow brother-in-arms while the girls are distracted." Before Scott could blink his friend was already dragging their teammate and the poor kid outside ready to start getting all the dirt he could about their teammate before she stopped them. It was, after all, the perfect chance to relieve a little of their curiosity about the mystery that was Dr. Hermione Granger.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Tapping his hands against the steering wheel, Kevin glanced at the passenger seat and his fidgeting daughter. He knew that tonight would be hard for her (she was a terrible liar) but it was a necessity. Watching as she twisted her hands together nervously, he spoke. "Look, I know this is going to be hard, Stace, but there is nothing I can do about it. You just need to relax and enjoy yourself; no one will find out."

As expected of one of her age group, she let out a frustrated whine. "I know. It's just, urgh, I wish we could just tell them."

"They made it very clear that only immediate family could be told."

He clearly remembered the panicked call from his ex-girlfriend, demanding he get his ass over to her place because of a situation involving their daughter. The emergency had turned out to be a pair of visitors, a teacher, from Salem's Witches Institute who had come to invite his little girl to attend her school and an employee of the U.S. Ministry of Magic from the Muggle Relations Department.

Apparently his daughter was a witch.

According to the Ministry worker it was fairly common for a child to be born with magic even if their parents were not so inclined. In fact, nearly a third of the children who went to Salem were from such a background.

What followed was perhaps the strangest conversation Kevin had ever had. The little history lesson they were given did not endeared him to the idea of sending his child to join such a backward, prejudicial community, but Ms. Zimmer had helped ally many of his fears. The community had changed radically in the past several years, becoming more accepting of Muggleborns and the U.S. was leading the charge.

It was very important that Stacey be able to attend a school of magic, learn how to control her power; untrained she could be a danger to herself and others according to the woman. And what better place than Salem's? It was a very progressive school in the Magical community for its wide acceptance of Muggleborns. The U.S. Ministry had always been on the cutting edge of Muggle relations, extending the Statue of Secrecy to more than any other country.

Kevin had been comforted by the fact that in the U.S. he was allowed to be told of his daughter's gift despite not being married to her mother or living with her. Julie, his ex, was even allowed to include both her parents, sister, live-in boyfriend and nanny in on the news.

Unfortunately, despite the more open policy involving Muggle relations Kevin had not been given permission to tell his brother or his family the news. It had something to do with the part-time custody agreement and residency concerns they explained. He suspected it had more to do with his brother's involvement with the military. He could only imagine what would happen if the public at large ever found out about magic let alone the government. He may not have liked it, but he understood the reasons and knew that the rules were only there to protect them.

Basically what it amounted to was spending a fun filled Thanksgiving dinner with an enthusiastic eleven year old girl, who had not stopped talking about her amazing new school since the term had begun. Kevin was equal parts pleased and exasperated that Salem's was unlike its counter-parts around the world and offered non-boarding options. Stacey was able to come home each day and tell her parents all about the wonders she experienced at school, at least he could still be thankful she was at the age where she wanted to talk to them. So now he had to get through a night of family holiday drama and keep his little girl from spilling her secret to everyone who would listen.

Sometimes being a parent could really suck.

Pulling up to the curb he carefully parked making sure to leave plenty of room in case anyone else needed to move their car; it was going to be a very packed house tonight. Opening the door he grabbed the dish of sweet potatoes from the back he had been ordered to bring, as Stace slid out of the front seat, slumping against the side of the car.

Dragging her feet despite the rain she followed him to the front door as he hit the buzzer. Looking at his offspring he tried to offer up some last minute advice. "Don't forget to smile. You're supposed to be happy."

"Yeah, Dad." The sarcasm was made all the more obvious through the grin she now had plastered to her face.

Before he could comment the door swung open and Claire was enfolding them both in hugs and kisses. "Kevin!" was the squeal in his ear followed by an even louder, "Stacey!" as his sister-in-law squeezed the life out of his daughter. "Oh, it's wonderful to see you both. In, come in, before you freeze to death."

Hustled inside they both slipped off their coats to dry as a call from the back of the house grabbed his attention. "Hey, Kevin." Scott greeted as he came inside followed by several other men, probably his mysterious team, abandoning the BBQ for the moment.

The two brothers embraced. "Hey, bro. How is the bird coming along?"

"You're just in time I'm about to take the thing off," answered the older man. Turning, Scott bent down, holding his arms wide open as Stacey jumped into them. "Wow, girl, be careful I'm not as young as I used to be and you're getting awfully big there." Stacey just giggled in reply. "How's my favorite niece?"

"Uncle Scott, you're not that old. I'm doing good," she said blushing before returning to his side.

Still smiling at the girl, Scott spoke. "Why don't you go find your cousins and tell them we're almost ready?"

She saluted his brother and took off into the house.

Holding up the sweet potatoes Kevin gestured toward the kitchen. "Why don't you lead the way?" he told his brother wanting to get out of the entrance-way before someone else tried to come through the door.

Walking toward the kitchen proved to be quite the ordeal as he waded through the crowd, trying not to spill the pan. Finally making his way into the kitchen he managed to deposit the dish and begin to make his way back toward the living room, sure he could catch some of the game before they all sat down to eat. As he passed the dining room, he caught sight of a pretty redhead and her temptingly curvy companion perched on a loveseat with a pair of crutches resting off to the side.

Placing a winsome smile onto his face he barely made it two steps before a whirlwind of energy ran into him and began to incessantly tug on his arm to get his attention. Giving a half-smile at those staring at him, Kevin was half dragged off to the side of the room by his daughter who was obviously about ready to burst with some newfound knowledge. Before he could even begin to scold her for her rudeness Stacey began speaking and he could see the effort it was taking her not to squeal in excitement.

"Oh my god! Oh my God! Dad! He's here. I don't know how or why, but he's here! As in actually physically here! Oh my god! No one is ever going to believe me," She said, not even pausing to breathe.

Grabbing her shoulders to keep her from jumping up and down Kevin tried to rein her in. "Stace! Stacey, hold on girl. Breathe. Once, twice, breathe. Now tell me what you are talking about."

Taking a deep breath she released a small squeal. "Harry Potter!"

Clearly not understanding what she was saying Kevin prompted her for more of an explanation. "Who?"

"Ugh, dad don't you listen? Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived, the one who defeated the Dark Lord. The one who saved the Wizarding World," she explained.

It took him a moment to remember what he had learned of the history of the Wizarding World from Stacey's tales and the employee at the Muggle relations Department of the Ministry. Now he remembered the disturbing story, the child that had grown up to be a hero, the revered reckless young man the younger generation idolized and wanted to emulate. Directing Stacey further into the corner, the most privacy they could find for the moment he spoke. "Are you sure?"

"Yes!" was the excited reply.

His mind started racing. What was the walking legend doing here in his brother's house? How was he going to keep this situation from spiraling out of control? The last thing he needed was the Ministry barging in because Stacey had broken the Statue of Secrecy accidentally, and with him, the adult, being held responsible. His eyes swept the room deep in thought when his daughter began to tug on his hand again to regain his attention.

Turning his focus back on the present he looked at his daughter who was once again fighting not to jump up and down in excitement. Following her gaze, Kevin caught sight of a pair of women, his eye lingering a bit on the curly haired one, who had been joined by a young man with messy black hair.

"It's him." Stacey's voice was almost a whisper in awe. Once again Kevin wasn't given the chance to think as his daughter dragged him over to the group and began introductions. Pinning the young man with an intense stare she spoke. "You're Harry Potter The-Boy-Who-Defeated-Voldemort."

The man looked startled at being addresses so forwardly and Kevin sent him a sheepish smile as an apology knowing that his daughter sometimes had that effect on people. Before any of them could react she was already in front of the woman he had been eying earlier. "And you're Hermione Granger The-Exile."


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: I own nothing of the Stargate or Harry Potter worlds. Dialogue is borrowed from the episode 'Acension.'

A/N: Sorry about the delay. I have had a crazy holiday and have not been able to update for a few days. This is going to be the last chapter for awhile. I thought I had found a beta to help pick up where I had left off on Granger Enchanted, but I am now looking again. If anyone is interested please send me a PM.

Chapter 12 Thursday, part 3

Thursday 5:22pm Mountain Time, Colorado Springs, Colorado

The silence that met the girl's announcement was deafening. Hermione could feel her pulse jump erratically as her eyes darted around the room, looking for anyone who might be paying undue attention to their conversation. Thankfully it was clear, but this was not a discussion she wanted to have out in the open, at her colleague's home.

A politely confused smile appeared on her face as Hermione prepared some damage control. "I'm not sure that this is the best-"

The girl ignored her in her blind enthusiasm giving her undivided attention to Harry and Hermione. "Oh, I've read all about you at school. Both of you really. My friends are never going to believe that I met you." Again her voice took an almost reverent tone as she turned an unnerving stare on Hermione. "Especially you, my teacher is going to flip. We were just studying your writings in History of Magic."

Bewildered Hermione repeated the girl. "History of Magic?"

Out of the corner of her eye Hermione caught Harry shaking his head at the girl before he caught her staring. She wasn't given the chance to question her friend's behavior before the girl began to explain her previous statement. "Yes, History of Magic. We have been covering all of your writings to understand current events and what is happening over in the UK with the Modernization Movement."

"Modernization Movement?" echoed Hermione. She could see the guilt on Harry's face and raised an eyebrow in inquiry.

He coughed. "Look, I was going to tell you, it just never really seemed like the right time."

Hermione took a deep breath to calm herself before focusing back at the problem at hand; she would deal with Harry later. Right now she needed to keep this situation from spiraling out of control. Addressing the girl she began to take control of the dialogue. "Salem?"

The fervent grin that shot across her face confirmed Hermione's guess. "Oh, yes. I just started my first semester there this year, it's amazing."

"Muggleborn?" again Hermione guessed, it would explain her presence in a house full of Muggles during a holiday break from school. Also it would explain the instant recognition of the pair despite only learning about them in books. After all Hermione knew quite well of the almost obsessive need to learn about a new world, to prove that she belonged. The girl nodded at the query.

It was at this point that the man the girl had dragged over decided to jump in and help calm the situation. "I'm sorry about the, uh, ambush there. Stacey can get a bit carried away with the magic stuff." Holding out his hand. "The name is Kevin Taylor, I'm Scott's brother and this little bundle of joy is my daughter Stacey."

Grasping the firm grip Hermione took note of the easy going smile of the man before her as well as the appreciative look he sent her way. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Kevin. As you already know my name is Hermione Granger, this is Harry Potter, his wife Ginny and their son James. I work up in the mountain with your brother." She clarified, hoping that this man would jump to the right conclusion, that no one else in the house needed to know about their backgrounds.

"Nice to meet you and again I'm sorry about this. I'm not really sure why you folks are so important; I'm afraid I don't know a lot about the Wizarding World. Stacey here only got her letter this past summer and no one else from my family knows anything about magic," apologized Kevin, confirming that he understood their need for privacy.

"I understand," and she did. Hermione remembered the constant turmoil over what she should and could tell her parents about the Wizarding World growing up. It wasn't just the fact that with the dangerous stunts her and the boys got into she was afraid they wouldn't allow her to go back to Hogwarts each year, but that she didn't know how to explain a world to them they would never be part of.

Interrupting her musings Kevin spoke. "Maybe we can discuss this further over dinner? I know that Claire is probably about to hustle everyone out to the patio to eat."

A little reluctant, Hermione grabbed Kevin's offered arm. "Lead the way."

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Leaning back, Jack let the footrest of the Lazy-Boy elevate his legs and relieve the pressure on his gut. He didn't remember Janet's cooking to be this good in the past years.

"Hell of a job this year, Doc." Mummers of agreement from the rest of his team lounging across the various pieces of furniture met his ears.

Sending him a smile Janet spoke. "Thank you, Colonel, but I can't take all the credit: Cassie did most of the work."

The girl in question blushed at the praise. "It was nothing really; I just got everything together for mom to finish when her shift ended."

"It was wonderful, Cassie," praised Daniel who was slouched across the sofa.

"You go, girl," Jack said, giving her two thumbs up.

"An excellent meal, Cassandra Fraiser," Teal'c complimented.

Sam gave the girl a side hug. "You're turning out to be quite the chef, Cassie."

She turned even brighter red at the praise and quickly tried to deflect the attention. "T-thank you, I'm gonna get the pie ready for desert. Everyone wants ice cream right?"

They all nodded and Cassie slipped back into the kitchen to cut the pumpkin pie. Sighing in appreciation of a good meal Jack absorbed the feeling of contentment of being surrounded by his little make-shift family. It was nice to relax and hangout without the threat of saving the world from an evil alien invasion.

The night had been going well so far and the obvious pink-elephant in the room of Carter's possible delusions had been all but ignored. While Cassie had clearance and knew all about the SGC considering she wasn't a native of Earth, they didn't like discussing current missions around the girl.

Teal'c had surprised them all with volunteering stories about his childhood on Chulak and Cassie had even spoken about her village and a similar holiday on her world. Something had changed and Jack had a strong suspicion it had to do with the new archeologist. The woman had a knack for getting people to act outside their comfort zone.

Interrupting his musings Jack's attention was drawn to the game as the linebacker rushed across the goal line to...score! He jumped up. "Oh, yeah!"

"I still do not seem to get the rules of this game, O'Neill. What is its purpose?" asked Teal'c after he had settled down from his team's victory.

With a sigh he tried to explain the rules of football to the Big-Guy again. Carter helped before deciding to throw in the towel early and get some sleep.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

He couldn't decide if he should feel relieved or worried. The dinner had gone remarkably well considering the amount of censoring he had to put forth in order to keep the existence of the Wizarding World a secret from Hermione's new co-workers. They were quite the inquisitive bunch and it made him all the more curious about his friend's new life. Clamping down on the feeling Harry let his gaze travel across the table only to meet Stacey's unnerving gaze.

She was like a female Colin Creevey back in second year.

For a moment the loss of his fellow Gryfindor sent a pang through his heart. It was a familiar pain, considering the losses they had suffered during the war.

Shaking off the feeling Harry let his gaze travel around the table. Perhaps sensing his turmoil Ginny caught his eye, but he sent her a reassuring look before taking in the rest of the happy gathering. Claire and her sister were fussing over the younger kids who looked close to falling asleep at the table. Moving along, he noticed Kurtis was once again making boisterous movements with his hands as he told a story to Kyle, Mary, Trent and Eric. As Harry watched he spotted the subtle glances Eric kept throwing across the table, following the boy's stare he was amused to note it was directed at Hermione who had been in a quiet conversation with Kevin and Stacey through most of the meal. Unintentionally chuckling under his breath he almost choked when Hermione turned her head and sent him an unnerving stare.

Oh Merlin, was he in trouble once they got back to her flat later that night.

Grimacing at the thought he let his attention switch back to the festivities and caught Kurtis' date, Mrs.-Ex-Something-Or-Another, blatantly checking him out. Freaked out Harry quickly turned away found himself in the middle of a conversation going on next to him.

"...so there we are, covered in muck from the swamps and Kyle is nearly jumping out of his skin because something brushed up against his leg in the water," recounted Kurtis with a shit-eating grin directed at Mary, Kyle's wife.

"Please, you were just as freaked out as I was, sir," snorted Kyle.

Taking the moment to sip at his drink Kurtis shrugged off his friend's comment and continued. "Anyway. It's getting dark and we can't get in radio contact with anyone til we reach the higher ground so Tyler decides we should keep going. About halfway through the march Kyle suddenly stops convinced he heard something..." He paused to let the suspense build. "There is this moaning sound coming from the tree line. Thinking it is a wounded animal we all head over hoping that whatever it is can be found so that we can get some food since our supplies had run out earlier that day. Tyler takes point, but I guess Kyle didn't want to wait or was just too scared to be left guarding the flank. So he runs in screaming like a girl, waving his gun around and scares the living daylights out of this pair of local teenagers having some alone time in the woods."

Flustered with his face buried in his hands Kyle spoke. "I was not screaming. I was merely trying to scare off any potential predators in the area."

"No, he was screaming," Kurtis corrected making Mary struggle to keep a straight face and show sympathy for her man.

"So what happened?" asked Trent, Eric's friend from the Academy.

"Well after we got the pair calmed down they were able to escort us to their village. The locals helped us with supplies and lent us a guide to show us how to climb the mountains," narrated Kurtis. "It wasn't nearly as bad as the time..."

Harry let himself get caught up in another story and enjoyed the dessert as it was passed out, grateful that everything seemed to be nice and normal for once.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Thursday 8:44pm Mountain Time Colorado Springs, Colorado

Kicking the door shut with her foot, Sam maneuvered the leftovers she held to free an arm to lock the door. With a bent elbow she managed to flip on the light switch and steer around the furniture to reach the kitchen table to set down her burden. Opening the fridge she had to shift the contents around before they would all fit in. Her task completed, she finally gave her full attention over to the alien who was silently brooding at the table.

Feeling her stare Orlin lifted his head, acknowledging her presence.

The tension in the room built, but neither broke the silence. Sam struggled to voice the questions she had swimming in her head, her new trust of Hermione warring with her need to understand the new potential threat before. Whether that was Hermione or Orlin, she didn't quite know.

He wasn't going to speak until she started and with a sigh of defeat she slumped into the chair opposite him. Their earlier argument which Hermione had interrupted led her to believe he wouldn't respond well being put on the spot. Gentley, she spoke. "Please explain."

He was silent and she was afraid he wouldn't answer before he opened his mouth. "I'm forbidden."

Surprised, she made sure her face didn't betray her before cautiously continuing. "By who?"

Breaking their eye contact he turned away obviously pained at keeping her in the dark. "My kind. We are forbidden to speak about that point in our history...there are certain things that we wish to forget about...and by the time I was born very few knew the truth behind the legends."

"Legends?" echoed Sam unconsciously. It was hard to imagine that a race as old and as advanced as his would still have legends.

A smile actually split his face and Orlin stopped staring off into space to give her his attention. "With all you have seen and learned since joining the Stargate program you shouldn't discount the power of myths and legends." He chinned, stunning Sam. "There is a grain of truth in every story told...Every story." He whispered as if the confession gave him pain.

A feeling of foreboding hung in the air at his last words and Orlin turned his head away again, shamed by his people's actions, by not being able to share the truth with her, risking her rejection, she didn't know.

Sam's head was swimming, not sure how to proceed. She wasn't Daniel, she didn't have an encyclopedia of ancient legends memorized, she had no idea what Orlin might be hiding, if she even could identify the story if he did share it.

"What can you tell me?" her tone was firm hoping that Orlin's conflicted loyalties would allow her in.

Still refusing to meet her gaze he began. "When I was still a child my brother would tell me stories, about our people's journeys across the stars, our heroes, glorious battles, all the exciting things a boy could dream about.'

"You have a brother?" she didn't know why that startled her, that he could be so human.

He shook his head. "I had a brother. He died in the plague that killed most of my people."

She didn't know what to say. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be. It happened a very long time ago, millennia before you were born." He paused a moment to let her absorb the information. "But as an older brother is wont to do he also told me other stories. Stories to frighten...to keep me awake at night." He paused, lost in those long ago memories.

"Ghost stories?" guessed Sam, remembering her own brother's style.

"I guess that would be the closest equivalent in your culture," he agreed. "There was one subject though which even he was reluctant to share...

"_They were known as the Grigori or the Watchers. Since time began they had observed and guarded those on the lower plane, never interfering, only occasionally being glimpsed by some as outside observers._

_Then the day came that everything changed._

_There was a girl._

_She was a ground breaking scientist, one of the first of out kind to theorize about another plane of existence and one of the first to actively try and access it. The founding mother of Ascension really._

_We don't even know her name, it was lost long before my time, or buried with the rest of our shame."_

"Shame?" Sam questioned unconsciously.

Orlin kept his eyes downcast. "_Yes our shame..._

_You see this girl, woman, she attracted the attention of one of these beings. The accounts vary, but the basic consensus is that he fell in love with her and she with him. Either way he ended up taking corporeal form to be with her. Over time others followed his example, taking wives or husbands amongst the races of the lesser plane._

_They became known as the Fallen because even though they still possessed the abilities they had in their previous state, they now faced mortal weaknesses, like greed, jealousy, pride, and hatred. At first they maintained their benevolence and were teachers who helped guide others to Ascend, then they were our conquerors._

_As their mortal loves perished or passed into the next realm they slowly became twisted by their powers and a war began to brew. A war between us and them, led by the original of the Fallen."_

An uneasy feeling began to seep into her skin as she listened to Orlin's tale, the parallels were hard to ignore. "What was his name?"

He could only stare at her, haunted. "We do not say his name.' He whispered.

But she couldn't be stopped. "But they were called the Fallen so wouldn't that mean-"

"I told you there were corresponding myths amongst your culture." She opened her mouth, "I cannot tell you, Sam, just leave it." He ordered, silencing her next question. Breathing heavily he took a moment before continuing. "_Things were bad, we were outmatched and outclassed..._

_You see, the Fallen weren't like those who Ascended; they were older and infinitely more powerful, they could do things that to this day my race still can't understand or replicate._

_The Four Races eventually bound together for what was the last time to fight. In the end it was only the intervention of the other beings which saved us. The Fallen were expelled to a place beyond all our reach, but the damage was too much._

_Our civilization was crumpling to disease, neglect and newer races. There were not many generations which passed before we all left this plane completely..."_

He trailed off and Sam waited for him to say more; she still couldn't understand his aversion to Hermione and didn't understand why he was so reluctant to share the details. "That still doesn't explain…"

"My hostility toward Dr. Granger, no." A small smile tugged at the corner of his face as if he was amused by her curiosity. A moment later his face suddenly sobered as he remembered the topic at hand.

"_War changes people...Samantha, you know this. You know that sometimes things have to be done, even if you don't what them to, that they are necessary..._

_During the war we considered them our greatest fighters, and really they were the only ones keeping us alive most of the time. They were brave, so brave to stand up against the Fallen, to realize that those they had trusted had turned against them._

_That their parents were no longer themselves."_

"Parents?" Queried Sam.

"_Yes. The children of the Fallen. They wielded powers far stronger than anything we had at our disposal, they were our sword and shield in the dark times._

_The Watchers eventually stepped in to end things. They cast the Fallen into the beyond, a place beyond anyone's reach. Then they also departed from the higher planes to a place even more removed from the mortal realm._

_There was peace, and all we wanted to do was keep it. Would do anything to keep things that way._

_We had seen them in action during the war, what were we to think?_

_All we could see through our fears were a bunch of new potential threats walking around who could turn into their parents at any moment. We were desperate to keep a new war which we thought was inevitable from starting._

_It was a preventative action and they never saw it coming. Never had the chance really."_

_We stripped them of their memories, we stripped them of their ability to Ascend, we bound them to their mortal shells to live out their lives in ignorance. We even breed into them the need to isolate themselves from new ideas and advancements in society. To keep themselves separated from the seeds of humanity we planted here on Earth. The hope was for them to die out or mix with other humans to the point that any latent abilities would be deluded over the generations that any knowledge of what they could potentially do would be lost._

_Dr. Granger is one of their decedents."_


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or Stargate. Dialogue borrowed from the episode 'Acension.'

A/N: This is the first new chapter I have been able to publish for this series in years if you have followed me on GE. The chapter is already up there and I will be posting on that site first a day before I do on this site as a thank you to those of you who have stuck with me over the years. I want to thank my wonderful beta JR Granger, without whom I wouldn't be able to finally start posting again.

Chapter 13 Friday, part 1

Friday, 3:15am Relative Mountain Time for Earth, Hidden Free Jaffa Encampment

The mid-morning sun was already unrelenting in its intensity, far different from the environment of her home world, and was causing beads of sweat to trickle uncomfortably down her back. Feeling the weight of a stare focused on her, Ka'ryn lifted her gaze from her meal to spot Master Bra'tac standing at the edge of the clearing observing her. As their gazes locked he motioned for her to follow. Setting aside the dish she followed him as he led her away from the camp, toward the chappa'ai.

Falling into step next to the venerable warrior, Ka'ryn waited for him to speak, knowing that it was not her place to begin the conversation.

Eventually Bra'tac spoke. "The children are doing well?"

"They are," Ka'ryn reported. Since they had left the Tauri world the group had been mostly subdued being under the care of another group of unknown Jaffa. The younger ones however were more trusting and had been able to drop their guard enough to feel at ease. Some had already started to create mischief.

"And your task?"

Frowning at the question Ka'ryn gave herself a moment to think before answering.

Master Bra'tac had ordered her to introduce herself to everyone in the encampment and learn one thing about each individual.

Not as easy of a task as one might expect, despite the small size of the settlement. Everyone she had met seemed determined to want to draw her into unnecessary conversation, tell her stories, get her help with a chore or some other such diversion. Everyone was genuinely glad to meet her and had shown concern for the predicament her group of refugees was in, making it all the harder for her to keep focused on her goal of not forming any attachments. She had promised Hermione that she would give the Free Jaffa a chance, at least until her wards had settled, at least until she found a way to track down the group of female Jaffa warriors she had heard stories of.

"It is progressing," Ka'ryn answered, hiding her annoyance with the situation.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Master Bra'tac incline his head at her words. "Very well."

They continued their trek in silence until they finally reached the clearing that held the chappa'ai. The Jaffa stationed as guards bowed at first Master Bra'tac then herself before taking up their posts again as the two companions stood at attention in front of the great ring.

Curious at the purpose for their journey Ka'ryn finally broke the silent waiting a few minutes later with a raised eyebrow directed at the older Jaffa.

Master Bra'tac let a slight upturn of his lips show before answering her query. "We are waiting for the return of the scouting party which was dispatched to investigate an abandoned planet in Nut's old territory. They are looking for the possible locations of the settlements other children might have been taken to."

Clamping down on the initial resentment she felt at not being allowed to go along with the group she took a couple breaths through her nose to calm down. This was a test; just like the task Master Brat'ac had already assigned her. She needed to keep a level head and prove to the Jaffa she could be trusted to help in the pursuit of Nut's followers.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Bra'tac had to fight not to show his amusement at the battle the young woman beside him was going through. He knew that the girl was smart enough to realize his purpose in assigning her to greet everyone in the encampment and knew that she still did not fully trust him or any other Jaffa around.

It would take time and he hoped when the time came for the girl to make her final choice she would have enough attachments to remain with them.

She had been hurt by the indifference of her relations for the better part of her life and lived on a world where she never had a choice in what she could be. The capture by Nut's men in some ways was a blessing in disguise, forcing her to step up as a leader and realize her true strengths. The meeting with SG-11 and Dr. Hermione Granger in particular showed her the possibilities of a better life.

He just needed to show the girl she didn't have to do it alone, that she could trust those of authority without getting hurt. She had the potential to be a great asset to the Free Jaffa if her temper didn't get away from her. He hoped that this meeting might help.

After all they both had similar temperaments.

As he observed the girl Bra'tac noticed the moment when she finally composed herself and stopped clenching her fist in frustration.

To fill the silence as they waited he continued to speak. "According to their message they were unable to find any evidence that Nut has inhabited the world for a number of years."

"Then what is the next step?" questioned the girl.

"Over the coming weeks we will continue to send out teams to gather intel and look for any more children that have been abducted. The Tauri will help coordinate our search to pinpoint the location of Nut's home-world," he explained.

Even though he kept his gaze on the chappa'ai he could feel her stare on the side of his face. "And then what will happen, Master Bra'tac?"

Turning his regard on the girl he answered with a fierce expression. "Then we rid the galaxy of another False God."

Ka'ryn wasn't given the chance to respond before the Gate began to activate, drawing their attention. As the final chevrons locked into place the vortex of energy shot out of the ring before setting into its familiar shimmering surface. As they watched several Jaffa stepped through the Gate before it closed.

Stepping forward Bra'tac met Haffin and greeted him with a customary bow. "Tek ma tek, Haffin."

"Tek ma tek, Master Bra'tac," responded the other Jaffa.

Looking beyond Haffin he was pleased to see that the rest of the party was accounted for and in good health. "We will discuss your findings later in the evening. For now you can spend some free time with your families."

The group nodded and began to split up at his announcement. Haffin chose to hang back to give a brief overview of the operation and so did Ry'ac. The boy silently stood off to the side, waiting for him to conclude his business with the other Jaffa, most likely planning to inquire about his father, Teal'c.

With half a mind on the conversation about the mission Bra'tac couldn't help but notice when the pair of youngsters finally noticed each other. He had brought Ka'ryn to the Gate for this very reason. The boy had come far over the past few years in overcoming his anger directed as his father with the repercussions his leaving to join the Tauri had on Ry'ac and his mother. In fact the boy still had difficulty dealing with those in authority. Starting his training had helped calm him and Bra'tac hoped that the similarities in the two youngsters would allow them to become fast friends, which would benefit the both of them.

As he continued to listen to Haffin's description of the abandoned Goaul'd base the team had discovered Bra'tac kept one eye on the pair. Both were openly curious of the other and were taking the opportunity to size each other up.

Walking back though the forest the two naturally fell into step with each other. He couldn't hear their conversation, but by the time they arrived at the camp Bra'tac had to fight back his amusement at seeing a noticeable blush stain the girl's cheeks and the straightening of Ry'ac's already perfect posture when Ka'ryn looked his way.

It looked like they were even more suited than he had thought.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Friday 5:42am Mountain Time, Colorado Springs, Colorado

Looking out of the window, Orlin saw the sunrise starting to dispel the darkness. Not moving, he continued his silent vigil. Light began to bleed into the room, illuminating the features of a sleeping Samantha Carter.

After his story and the subsequent discussion that had followed, he had patiently waited for her to retire for the evening, knowing that only when she was in a deep sleep could he begin to rectify his mistake. He should never have been so liberal in his explanation of the matter with the Granger woman.

It was a subject strictly forbidden and with his already damaged standing amongst the Others, it was something he couldn't risk. He needed to do something before Sam awoke. It wasn't something that she would just let rest. No, she would want to pick it apart and discover all the things that were better left forgotten. It was who she was and what made her so special, but if any of his kind discovered a mortal meddling in the matter, the repercussions would be severe.

There was only one choice.

She had to forget.

Thankfully, it was still within his diminished powers to perform the alteration of her memories. Still, it was a task that would be easiest if she were asleep. It was the reason, he told himself, that he had divulged the story in the first place, knowing that eventually she wouldn't remember the revelation.

With reluctance, Orlin had entered her mind while she lay unconscious and began to rewrite the events of the past few hours. In retrospect, perhaps it would have been easier to lie, to come up with some other explanation that would have satisfied Sam's curiosity, but he had wanted to tell her the truth. He'd wanted to confide his sins in her, even if only for a short time.

Once the task was completed, he stood staring at Sam who looked so peaceful in her slumber, the violation of her mind going unnoticed. He brought his hand up longing to push the stray strands of hair out of her face, knowing that in his current state the act was impossible. The rest of the night had passed without interruption as he had sat in a chair at the foot of the bed keeping watch over Sam.

With one final look at the slumbering woman, Orlin released the hold he kept on his human form. The room filled with the light of his incorporeal form and he passed through the walls to the outside world. Following the directions he had gleaned from Sam's mind, he traveled to the residence of Dr. Granger.

Finding the location, he allowed his senses to explore the area and discovered to his surprise the presence of three more of her kind in the lodging. A man, a woman, and a child all asleep, each with a uniquely different resonance than that of the Granger woman.

Extending his senses, he focused on Dr. Granger's resonance and found her awake. Gliding closer, he spied her perched out on the balcony, sipping tea, watching the rising sun and reading a morning paper. She seemed unfazed by the chill and dampness in the air from the previous night's downpour. Unsure of how to approach and dreading the conversation to come, Orlin settled into the available space on the terrace to retake the form he had been using since his arrival on Earth.

The silence stretched between them while he collected his thoughts and tried to voice the reasons for his visit. It was clear Dr. Granger was well aware of his arrival, judging by the tension in her shoulders. He was not at all welcome.

"What do you want?"

Settling into a wicker chair opposite her, Orlin answered, "I would like to speak with you."

A faint upturn at the corner of her mouth was the only sign that she had heard him. He waited for more of a response, only to be denied as she continued to ignore his presence in favor of continuing to study the horizon. "Major Carter has no more knowledge of the incident the other day and the matter need not be discussed with her further."

At his pronouncement, Dr. Granger swung her gaze away from the sunrise to pierce him with a furious stare. "You erased her memories."

"Samantha does not need to concern herself in this matter. I simply removed the temptation for her curiosity to get the best of her," Orlin stated, not denying the accusation.

Watching the woman he could see the internal conflict she was in, understanding that this was not something that anyone else needed to know about, that it was a necessary measure. It took a moment before she spoke. "What does she remember?"

His mind flicked through the memories he had witnessed in Sam's head and the alterations he had crafted before speaking. "She knows that you discovered my presence in her house and agreed not to tell anyone...and that you two have come to an understanding regarding secrets and trust."

She snorted at his words. "Yes, Sam agreed to put aside her doubts about me because she trusts that I won't do anything to harm her, and that you are the bigger threat to look out for." She sent him a glare. "I don't think this is the best way to begin a friendship, built on secrets and half-truths."

"Yet you will not tell her," concluded Orlin as he studied the woman before him. Dr. Granger obviously had much to keep from the people she worked with: she wasn't about to jeopardize her position to reveal herself now.

The knuckles holding the teacup had turned white. "No. You don't need to worry about that. I won't divulge any more." The early morning silence descended on the balcony as the topic at hand came to an uneasy close. It was broken only a moment later by Dr. Granger as she fully turned toward him for the first time and fixed him with a piercing stare. "You, on the other hand, will need to answer a few questions if you want to stay in Sam's good graces."

Orlin froze. His heart warred with his head over the implications of her statement. He knew that Dr. Granger was making no idle threat and yet every instinct in him told him not to reveal the truth to her. She was dangerous in a way he couldn't understand. She was an abnormality; someone who shouldn't belong in the Stargate program, someone who, for some reason, had defied everything her kind should be disposed toward.

What had happened?

They were suppose to have faded into obscurity, isolated from the rest of the humans on this planet by instincts programmed into them, died out in their little enclaves, lost to history.

Yet Dr. Granger was proof that not only did the bloodlines continue, but still held power and judging by the presence of the others in her home, had thrived. Only someone with a sense of a higher plane could have seen him in his incorporeal state.

Their very presence was a threat to his kind. The potential destruction they could cause if they regained their former abilities...he didn't want to think about it.

And here was a woman in the perfect position to find out the truth. A woman that even felt different than others of her kind. She was a danger, and he couldn't tell her anything, not without risking everything.

Looking into Dr. Granger's unfathomable eyes, he knew that she wouldn't let this go easily. "Dr. Granger, I do not know what you want from me. You have already shown your unwillingness to answer my questions, and I feel no obligation to answer yours."

Her gaze turned steely. "Do not preach to me about withholding information! I have never done anything to you, yet you tried to poison a friend of mine's mind against me! You know exactly why I can see you, but you refuse to share the details and expect me to trust you, allow you to interrogate me! Remember, Orlin, you are the intruder here. This is my world and I will protect it from any arrogant alien who thinks they know more than they do!"

Standing, he stepped toward her chair in an effort to gain an advantage with his height. "We both know that you know the reason you can see me." His voice turned hard. "Now unless you want your friends to discover us," he let his eyes turn toward the occupied bedroom further along the side of the apartment, "I should get back before Samantha awakes."

"What do you know about my kind?" came the woman's demand as her temper bested her.

Ignoring her, Orlin stepped away, determined to end this meeting. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Her next biting words erased all his hope of escape.

"Silly me!" she spat in angry sarcasm. "Why would I expect you, someone whose race hunted my kind, to know anything about us?"

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Hermione could feel her pulse racing as she waited for Orlin to respond. The alien didn't move, didn't react; he simply stood like a statue. Quickly losing patience, she stood and approached him, mocking his earlier bid to force her to cower in his shadow. In her heart she had no doubt her conjecture was correct.

"It is quite presumptuous, I suppose, that you would remember anything about us," she taunted, stepping even closer. "After all, I'm assuming that your race isn't in the habit of trying to eradicate others, but I could be wrong. We really don't know each other, do we?"

Her pointed remarks had finally started to crumble his defenses. "You don't know what you're talking about," said Orlin, this time sounding far less snide.

"Then explain it to me," she challenged.

Hermione waited for Orlin to make up his mind with baited breath. It was a good sign that he hadn't just disappeared, but it was still a risk to confront him when she didn't know enough about the situation to know how he would react. The silence stretched and Hermione backed off a bit, retaking the seat she had previously occupied, determined to give him some space: she didn't need him even more on the edge.

In an effort to control her impatience, Hermione studied Orlin. She hadn't been given the opportunity the day before and if she were to get any answers out of him, she needed to be at the top of her game. He wore clothes that resembled the current Earth fashion, probably in an effort to put Sam at ease. His face was quite boyish, but devoid of the expected laugh lines or carefree air that today's youth displayed. Instead, his conduct displayed seriousness far beyond that of anyone his apparent age: an ageless wisdom.

He was a being far older than any other she had met and he knew something about the Wizarding World and herself that she desperately needed to understand. This went far beyond her usual curiosity, it was an instinct telling her of the danger remaining ignorant would cause. Hermione had thought it had been just a hallucination or a meaningless dream she had experienced when she had passed out in the infirmary after catching sight of Orlin. Then last night it had come back in all of its technicolor glory, revealing far more than she even wanted to know.

The familiar feelings of being hunted were not something she soon would forget.

The blind terror as she had fled through the frozen tundra...the exact shade of red her blood had looked in the ice...the hate-filled faces of her pursuers...the helplessness as she was strapped down in the observation room pumped with so many drugs she could barely even focus on staying conscious...falling into a void...disconnected from her body...

They weren't her memories, but she had no doubt that they were real. That somewhere deep inside of herself, locked away, the knowledge of her people's true past lay. That somehow, being around Orlin had unlocked a small part of it. She needed to understand what happened, what it could mean, and what it meant for her continued presence at the SGC.

So she waited for Orlin to make up his mind to trust her.

Sighing in defeat, Orlin finally sunk into a chair of his own, meeting her gaze with his. "I was far too open with Samantha and had to mend my mistake before any damage could be caused...If it were to become known that I shared even this much with you, they would step in to eliminate both of us."

"'They'?" she couldn't help but ask.

"The others of my kind." Weariness showed on his face. "In the time before we Ascended, my people were involved in a war. A war which we barely won and which left deep scars on all involved."

The haunting quality of Orlin's voice caused vivid memories to surface in Hermione's mind of her own war. "Your ancestors went from being seen as allies to another threat. What you are is but a glimpse of what your kind were capable of at one point. We were scared of another war, scared of what you would become. A pre-emptive strike was planned-"

"An extermination," Hermione supplied, his words putting her on edge.

Orlin shook his head. "No. We didn't want to destroy your kind - we did owe you for helping us win - we just wanted to clip your wings. Our scientists had devised a way to lock away most of the potential in your genes, erase your memories of what you were, place biological compulsions that would effectively prevent future generations from exploring your full potential."

Her mind raced as pieces began to fit together.

The tendency of the Wizarding World to isolate themselves in their enclaves and their unwillingness to accept change...The populace's apathy in exploring their own history beyond the founding of Hogwarts…The lack of diversity in everything from sports to reading material to creative thinking…How few truly 'new ideas' there were.

They had been stripped of something that until this moment she hadn't known was missing, an integral part of themselves. Their curiosity of the universe, their desire to explore beyond the obvious - no wonder Orlin found her to be so frightful. She was the very embodiment of the tendencies which shouldn't be there - all because they had stripped her ability to use magic and been cast out because she was a 'threat'.

It looked like they had learned it from the best.

She remained silent, trying to piece together this new information as Orlin stood up and began to fade into light. "You have your answers now."

The balcony regained its former peaceful quiet for a few more minutes before the faint sounds of her guests moving about inside the flat reached her ears. Picking up her mug and the paper, Hermione walked back inside.

No, she didn't have answers, not really. Only a million more questions.


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: I own nothing of either Harry Potter or Stargate. Dialogue is borrowed from the episode 'Acension.'

Chapter 14 Friday, part 2

Friday 8:28am Mountain Time, Colorado Springs, Colorado

Still half asleep, Harry turned over in the bed, reaching for Ginny only to find himself frowning at the absence of his wife. Sitting up he rubbed his eyes to remove the fog from his vision before grabbing his glasses resting on the night stand, searching the room. Catching sight of the crib he noticed James was missing too and with a reluctant sigh he got out of the warm bed to start the day.

Shuffling into the front rooms wearing an old Quidditch shirt and boxers he found both Ginny and Hermione seated at the kitchen counter already dressed for the day, having what appeared to be a very serious discussion while James sat in his highchair eating some dry cereal.

At his approach both women stopped speaking and turned their attention to him. Warily he continued to enter the kitchen, feeling their eyes following him all the while as he made his way toward the awaiting coffeepot. It looked like he was going to need it. Once he had a mug Harry cautiously began to take a seat at the awaiting dining room table studying their reactions.

Ginny tried and failed to give him her usual warm smile; instead it was marred with an expression of concern. Uneasily he focused on Hermione who was absently stirring her cup of tea and had a smile plastered on her face that made him think of a large cat hunting her prey.

It took a moment for Harry to remember why his best-friend might be upset with him and when his brain finally decided to kick in he winced. He opened his mouth to begin apologizing for the previous night, he knew she would be mad at him for keeping her in the dark over her new celebrity and the changes her papers had helped spark in the Wizarding world, but was stopped by Hermione picking up a copy of Witch lying next to her.

Confused at how she had managed to get a copy of that paper he froze at her next words.

"_In a stunning turn of events Hermione Granger, who has mostly remained secluded from Wizarding society with a few notable exceptions, since her exile after the Final Battle of the Second War Against Voldemort has once again involved herself in current events._

"_Previously Miss Granger had made headlines for her involvement with Omar Abassi the scion of the Abassi Clan during his father, Mohamed's recent run for a seat on the International Wizarding Council. The daring pairing helped boost the previously conservative standing of the Abassi name to be a forerunner on the ticket. A more in-depth study of the potential motivations of these two political players is available on page 15._

"_This time, however, Miss Granger once again is being pulled into a Ministry investigation concerning several suspicious artifacts that have found their way into the black market in recent months. These artifacts are imbued with Dark Magic and a high priory is being given to stopping the distribution and sale of said items. At present the origin and nature of these artifacts is unknown. While no official statement has been released to confirm or deny her involvement, according to our sources in the Auror Office it has become necessary to contact outside help in hopes of identifying these artifacts, and Miss Granger is one of the ones being consulted for this case._

"_No mention has been made on why exactly Miss Granger has been chosen, but speculation is high in certain circles that her previous dealing with the Dark Arts may be what the Ministry is interested in. When asked about the skill-set that attracted the Ministry's attention Anthony Lennwood the Head of the Magical Law Enforcement Department said,_

"'_We are exploring any and all avenues of inquiry regarding these artifacts. The Ministry considers them a high priority and asks anyone with knowledge of them to step forward.'"_

"It goes on, but do I really need to continue Harry?"

He didn't know what to say. He hadn't even been able to broach the subject of the investigation yet during this trip. Cursing Jeff and his fan-boy attitude, the only one who could have possibly leaked that Hermione was being used as a source of info, Harry opened his mouth only to close it at her icy glare. "Don't. Don't even try to say that you were trying to protect me. I get that you didn't want to upset me about talking about the Wizarding world, I really do, but this…" She held up the paper and faltered before taking a deep breath and continuing. "You know what forget it." Standing she placed her cold tea in the sink and began to leave the room.

Feeling horrible he called to her. "Hermione."

Turning around he was silenced by the resigned expression on her face. "Harry I'm never going to be part of the Wizarding world again, whether they see me as a messiah or a monster, it doesn't matter." He could tell she did care, but didn't call her on it. "What does matter is that I still interact with individuals that come from that world, not just yourself. I need to know these things if I'm going to be able to protect myself from any opportunistic bastard out there. I need a friend who is going to give it to me straight."

"Alright, alright," Harry said, trying to pacify the enraged witch before him. "I'm sorry that I didn't tell you anything."

"And you agree not to do it again." Her tone brooked no room for disagreement. Shaking his head in agreement, he said, "I promise."

Thinking the discussion was at an end Harry was again put on the defensive as Hermione switched topics. "Now that that is all cleared up how about you tell me all about this important investigation I'm helping you with."

Uncomfortable and guilty at not telling her before, Harry outlined the case and even shuffled back to the bedroom to track down the copies of the rune inscription he had brought. Handing over the photos, he watched with amusement as Hermione quickly snatched them up and began to mumble as her fingers moved over the page trying to figure out their hidden secrets. He could tell that she was still upset about his actions when after he finished talking she sat up, stumbling across the room on her crutches in her haste to get away and headed toward her office to get some work done.

Feeling helpless Harry looked at Ginny who had kept out of the conversation. With a sigh she decided to enlighten him. "She's mad."

He raised an eyebrow at the understatement. "I think I got that. I knew she would be mad at me about keeping her in the dark, but…"

Ginny interrupted before he could begin to brood. "She's really not mad at you. She's mad at herself for letting others take advantage of things."

Maybe it was the fact that it still was early or that he was a guy, but Harry's brain couldn't seem to figure out what she was talking about. "Ginny I'm sorry, but I'm not sure what it is you're going on about."

She gave him an exasperated look. "Harry, the article."

He still didn't get it. "Look, I know I hadn't exactly gotten a chance to ask her to look at the translations on the artifact, but she does this kind of stuff with her archeology colleagues all the time; I didn't think she would mind," Harry protested.

Waving a hand to stop him Ginny spoke, her tone indicating that she was more than a little upset with him as well. "Dear, try not to dig yourself too deep a hole. We'll come back to the issue of your investigation later. That's not what this is really about."

What?

Seeing his lack of comprehension she elaborated, "Harry the article basically implied that she has been manipulating events in the Wizarding world from behind the scenes for years. That the last real relationship she had was a calculated political move on Omar's part to elevate his father's standing in the eyes of the public."

"Oh." There wasn't too much else he felt he could say. Omar wasn't really someone he had known all that well, an old friend of Bill's from Egypt. When Hermione had announced her intention to move into the region Omar had been someone she had been told to make herself acquainted with. Their relationship had progresses quickly from the beginning to the abrupt end.

"Yes, oh. She knew that Omar wasn't Mr. Right, that he had some very old fashion beliefs about a woman's place in society. This isn't the first time she has questioned why he was with her; the article just reinforced her doubts," Ginny explained. "Give her some time to get her thoughts sorted out."

Friday 11:06am, Cheyanne Moutain, Colorado

Sitting at her computer scanning the projected calculations, Sam resisted the urge to sigh. It wasn't working. Leaning back in her chair she tried to ease the tension by tilting her head from one side to the other to stretch her neck, but it was only a temporary measure.

Ever since she woke up this morning everything had felt off. She knew that she could figure out the right numbers, but given the way things had been going lately she was pushing herself far more than normal with the need to prove herself, and the continuing dead ends were driving her up the wall. Adding to her stress was the meeting with Hammond she had just come from.

Thankfully Daniel's entrance shook her out of her pessimistic thoughts.

"That's the last of it," he said, setting a cardboard box on her workbench.

"Thanks."

An awkward moment passed as he nervously shifted before finally speaking. "What are you working on?"

Ignoring the elephant in the room. "Well, based on your translation and SG-16's latest report, the Pentagon has started putting pressure on General Hammond to try to find a way to activate the weapon."

"You think that's going to be possible?" he asked with genuine interest.

"Well yeah." A smile tugged at the corner of Sam's mouth, her spirits lifting as she described her solution. "A naquada reactor can be interfaced easily enough. The problem is the burst of energy that's required makes the whole thing pretty dangerous."

A frown crossed Daniel's face. "How?"

Fully in her element now she explained. "Well, basically you have to start an overload in the reactor and then release it into the device. The problem is, once the overload is started, you have no choice but to release the energy, or the reactor will explode.

"So you'd better be sure you want the weapon to fire," Daniel simplified.

"Yep. I'm working on a way to try to buffer the energy in a safer environment prior to the release, but General Hammond hasn't given me much time." Her earlier frustration seeped into her tone.

Watching Daniel, Sam saw he was not listening to her, lost in his own thoughts, before he seemed to come to a conclusion. "By all accounts, this device on 636 is a pretty powerful weapon."

Catching onto what he was hinting at, Sam asked, "You think we should just leave it alone?"

"Well, let's just say I'd feel better if there was someone left to explain how to use it."

Friday 11:54am, Colorado Springs, Colorado

She entered the room with a bang, the office door swinging open to loudly collide with the flat's wall, startling the occupants of the living room. Pulling himself up from the reclined position he had taken on the couch, Harry watched with amusement as Hermione swung into the room, struggling to balance on her crutches and sling her arm into the sleeve of a coat at the same time.

Standing, Harry rushed over to help her. "Wow, slow down there Hermione."

With a huff of frustration she responded, "I don't have the time, I'm already running late."

"Late?" queried Ginny from her seat on the floor. They had been playing with James all that morning, patiently waiting for Hermione to emerge from her studies and calm down from the earlier showdown. He felt guilty for not telling Hermione about the case earlier and allowing her to lock herself in her office all day doing research in an effort to avoid him.

Without a glance in his direction, Hermione answered his wife's question. "Yes, late. I promised Kevin I'd meet up for lunch to continue our conversation."

Harry blinked in surprise; that was news to him.

As he watched Ginny let a smirk curve the corner of her mouth. "Really now? A date Hermione."

Letting out another huff, this time in exasperation Hermione replied, "Don't be silly Ginny. I'm simply helping the poor man better understand the world his daughter is part of."

"That may be what you think, but that's not what he is thinking. That man has the hots for you," commented his wife.

"Ginny!" shrieked Hermione, turning bright red and Harry could feel his own face becoming quite warm as well in mortification.

She only rolled her eyes. "Honestly Hermione you need to loosen up a bit, get laid-"

"Alright, alright, enough. I don't need to hear this," Harry protested. He didn't need to hear about his quasi sister's sex life.

"Don't be a prude, dear," his wife teased.

Before they got too off track Hermione steered the conversation back on course. "Anyways I need to get going, the cab should be here in a moment." Finally gracing him with her attention, Hermione addressed him with just a bit of her earlier ice beneath the words. "I'll be going into work after to get a book of mine, which should help me finish working out the remaining runes."

Caught off guard, Harry replied, "Okay. But really there is no rush."

"You two can go out if you want, do a little sight-seeing before the party tonight," commented Hermione as she opened the door, ignoring him.

"I'm glad you could make it" came the warm greeting Kevin sent her as he stood up to pull out her seat before taking his own. "I'll admit I was a little worried for a moment."

Hermione sent him a warm smile automatically, put at ease by his gentlemanly manner and let the relaxed atmosphere of the place lessen some of the tension she had been fighting all morning. "I'm sorry for troubling you. I was a little caught up in a project that came to my attention all of a sudden."

A small frown crossed his features. "Nothing serious I hope. I don't know much about my brother's work, but from what I've seen over the years it has not kept him out of harm's way."

Carefully avoiding the unasked question, Hermione was quick to change the subject back to her original objective. "Harry actually had me looking over a case of his."

"Is that a fairly common thing for you to do?" Kevin asked, successfully diverted.

She let a small sigh escape. "Not really, but I'm not unfamiliar with, at times, lending a hand to my friends when they're in a bit of a bind."

"You don't sound that happy about it," observed Kevin.

"It's complicated" was her halfhearted way of saying she didn't want to discuss it.

He didn't say anything; just studied her and she could feel her resolve to keep quiet slowly melting away. "Uncomplicate it."

A small smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. "There's not much chance of that…It has to do with a lot of what happened around the time I…departed the Wizarding world," she replied diplomatically.

"You never did explain much about that last night," he remarked, reaching across the table and taking her hand in his. "I know that we don't really know each other, but I would like that to change. Give me a chance to know the real you under all those layers."

Caught off guard at the familiarity he was taking, Hermione resisted the urge to pull her hand back. Despite her protests to Ginny it wasn't lost on her that Kevin was attracted to her and it had been a long time since she had allowed herself a chance to keep company with a man. The spectacular disaster that was her relationship with Omar, and her work schedule left little time for such things. She paused to examine her feelings. It felt nice, the human contact.

It was probably a combination of both the confrontation with Harry that morning and the memories that had been stirred the night before that loosened her tongue. "Your daughter called me The-Exile because that is what I am. I was expelled from Britain and had my magic stripped shortly after the war."

Her statement obviously startled him. "Uh, why?"

A bitter laugh escaped her. "Those struggling to remain in power thought that I was a threat. The trial caught me unprepared, and before I knew it I was living out of a hostel in Paris before an old friend let me crash at his castle in Bulgaria. Two months later I was living in Australia with an old friend of my parents, trying to cram an entire curriculum of high school into my head."

She found the partially unhinged jaw amusing. She had obviously caught him off-guard. "But why didn't you do anything?"

"I couldn't."

He frowned. "I don't understand, there had to be ways…"

Shake of the head. "No. My friends, the Order, my fellow students…well everyone really, were still recovering from wounds. I tried sending appeals, writing papers, doing everything I could think of, but as the months passed my initial fervor in trying to overturn the verdict dissipated. Everything was taking forever, I could see the years of battle still lying ahead of me. I was alone and tired. I didn't want to put my whole future on hold trying to fight for my place in a world I wasn't really sure I wanted to be part of anymore. That didn't want me."

She paused, carefully gauging her next words while watching his reaction. Even after so many years the lie never became easier. "My decision, as you can imagine, caused some problems with my friends. They eventually accepted my choice, but we haven't been as close since."

"You are a very brave woman, Hermione Granger," remarked Kevin as he took her other hand in his.

"Thank you." She could feel her face warming as a blush spread across her cheeks. It had been a long time since a man had treated her this way, and not just as something to ogle. Not that working at the base was a problem; the soldiers working there were great, but the other scientists tended to treat her like an oddity because of her age and gender.

"It's the truth. You really are remarkable, and I'm glad that my daughter decided to go all fan-girl last night so that we got the opportunity to meet."

Laughter. "I'm glad too." She let go of Kevin's hands and picked up the previously forgotten menu. "So, what is good here?"


	15. Chapter 15

Disclaimer: I still own nothing of Stargate or Harry Potter. Dialogue is borrowed from the episode 'Acension.'

Chapter 15 Friday, part 3

Friday 5:18pm Colorado Springs, Colorado

Entering her house Sam shrugged off her jacket to store in the closet. Thankfully she had just managed to avoid the downpour. Turning, she found Orlin standing in the middle of the room waiting for her.

"You're late."

With a sigh she moved to the kitchen, intent on at least getting out the leftovers she had from Janet's to make a sandwich before dealing with the persistent alien. "What do you mean?"

"You said you'd be home an hour ago. I was worried," he replied in the same patient tone.

She didn't need this at the moment and felt irritated by the whole situation he had her in. "Hey, this is not a relationship we have going here. I don't even know what it is."

"You still could have called." He looked a bit like a kicked puppy as he said this.

Sam attempted to reign in her temper, but knew her tone still conveyed her exasperation. "What are you talking about? You couldn't even answer the phone if I did."

"Maybe I could have," was his unexpected reply.

It was then that she finally noticed what should have been apparent the moment she entered the room. Her rarely used dining table was set up for a romantic dinner for two with, if she was not mistaken, some of her mother's china and candle sticks laid out.

Utterly confused. "How did…? I mean, I thought."

She cautiously reached out and touched his shoulder, a shoulder that resisted the contact.

"Surprise."

"How?" It came out as a whisper.

Orlin ignored her query as he pulled out her chair for her. "Things have been going well between us, right?"

A frown once again began to settle on her face. "There is no us, Orlin. I don't see how there ever could be. "

He didn't seem bothered by the rejection. "That was just because we used to live on different planes of existence. "

Confused. "Used to?"

"It's possible for my kind to take human form." He paused and corrected himself, "Actually, re-take human form, considering this is the way we started."

The doorbell rang before Sam could even formulate a thought. "Oh boy." The last thing she needed was someone walking in on her now that her friendly alien visitor decided he wanted to be seen.

"Carter!" Colonel O'Neill shouted through her door.

Oh, no.

"It's Colonel O'Neill. Disappear." She waved her hands at the alien, trying to convey her urgency for him to be gone.

Orlin didn't move and the doorbell once again rang.

"That's what I was trying to tell you. I can't anymore."

The only sound that could be heard was the echoing of Colonel O'Neill's fist meeting her door. Panicked, Sam grabbed Orlin and pushed him into a closet.

Answering the front door she found Colonel O'Neill holding a few pizza boxes and Teal'c standing off to his side in a cowboy hat, waiting for her.

"Hey guys, what are you doing here?"

When Carter opened the front door he could tell she was flustered at their presence and Jack couldn't hide the smile that broke across his face at the sight.

Sometimes she really made it just too easy.

Lifting the pizza boxes he replied, "We brought pizzas and a movie."

"Star Wars," was Teal'c's monotone reply.

Looking at his alien buddy in the ridiculously large cowboy hat, which he still didn't know how he had gotten ahold of, Jack shook his head. "He's seen it, what eight times?"

"Nine," interrupted Teal'c.

"Nine times," he corrected watching Carter's reaction, she was frowning. "If Teal'c likes it, it's gotta be ok." Jack knew his second-in-command would be a bit put out at the unexpected visit and knew she wasn't oblivious to the hovering the team had been doing the past couple days, but he wasn't about to be deterred. They were all worried about her and her reaction to the tests Hammond had scheduled her for.

"You've never seen Star Wars?" The skepticism in Carter's voice was obvious.

He shrugged. "Well, you know me and sci-fi. Come on, we never just get to hang out, so I thought we'd-"

She cut him off, "Uh, sir, as much as I, ah…" She glanced back inside the house with a worried expression.

"Carter." His voice lost a bit of its teasing quality. "Do you…already have company?"

Reluctantly she replied, "Kind of."

He kept his voice light. "A date?"

"I can understand why you might assume that I didn't have plans," she said, noticeably distracted.

He tried to subtly get a peek into the house, but Carter moved to block the view. Before an awkward silence could settle Jack spoke. "Don't worry about it. We'll find something else to do."

"I'm really sorry. I mean this is a surprise, very unexpected." She gave a bit of a nervous chuckle.

"Well good for you." Not sure what else to say. "Have fun."

She gave him a smile. "Thank you."

"Have a pizza…and fun." He thrust a pizza box into her hands and grabbed Teal'c to leave.

They climbed into his truck and Jack sighed at the change of plans. "So, now what?" he asked not wanting to think over much about Carter's mysterious date.

"I have read of a place where humans do battle in a ring of Jell-O," was Teal'c's surprising answer.

Jack grinned as he turned the key. "Call Daniel."

Neither noticed the black van down the block as they drove away.

Sighing in relief at the bullet she had just dodged Sam rushed to the other end of the house to check on her wayward guest.

Flinging open the door Orlin continued their discussion right where it left off. "As I was saying, once my kind chooses to take human form, we can't ascend again without the help of the others."

Sam just sighed in relief, running a hand through her hair.

Friday 8:21pm Eastern Time, Salem, Massachusetts

Picking up another delightful treat from the passing waiter Arthur was barely able to keep ahold of the morsel as a small body collided with his. Only years as a father kept him standing under the assault. Before he could identify his assailant she ducked around his body, using him as a shield. The mystery was soon solved however when she spoke. "Grandpa. Teddy is chasing me again."

Said boy made his presence known as he came charging forward, green hair flying, intent on catching his playmate, a huge glob of slim, most likely one of his son's products, clasped in his hand. "Arrrrgh!"

Shrieking, Victorie jumped up and began to climb up his back, causing him to lean forward in order to compensate for the unnatural angle he was at first forced into with the added weight. Teddy took the opening to lunge over his shoulder, aiming for the girl's hair.

Grabbing the boy by the collar of his shirt Arthur pulled the two apart as far as he could with each child holding onto the other. "Hold on, hold on." Still they struggled. "Stop!"

They finally froze at the change in his voice; he didn't pull out the commanding tone often, but when he did…

"Teddy, please put down whatever it is you are holding, and Victorie, I'm not as young as I once was, you need to get down."

Both chastened, Victorie slid down and Teddy placed the slim back in a box where it transformed into a snitch before storing it away. "Sorry Mr. Weasely," murmured the boy.

"Sorry Grandpa," said a sheepish Victorie.

At their contrite expressions Arthur fought a losing battle to hold onto his stern expression and let a smile grace his face. "Oh now, none of that. I know you kids were just having fun, and this is the perfect place to muck about, but just try to be a bit less rough in your play. Your parents," looking at Victorie, "and your grandma," he said looking at Teddy, "both brought you tonight as a treat. There are a lot of adults around and I need you both to act a little more-"

The sound of an explosion interrupted him as the room filled with fireworks, causing most of the adults to hit the floor out of instinct. Arthur's reflexes were quick to act and he grabbed both kids as a hypocrite blazed over his head. Turning he saw his son, George laughing manically across the room. "Grownup." Shaking his head Arthur finished his previous thought with a sigh.

Turning back toward the kids who were staring wide-eyed at the light show Arthur gave another sigh. Absently, he grabbed a couple handfuls of exploding dung-bombs from the nearest freebie tray and handed the kids each a handful. "You know what, just go have some fun. Just no attacking each other."

With identical smirks both scampered off to cause trouble. Staring across the room Arthur watched George send off another entirely too large volley of rockets.

"You are worried 'bout zim."

"How is he doing?" asked Arthur, ignoring the statement to turn and look at his daughter-in-law.

Fleur shrugged a shoulder, a hand resting on her expanding belly. "It iz 'ard to tell. You know what ee's been like."

Arthur knew he was probably blowing things out of proportion, but hearing that laugh, it brought back memories. That laugh which wasn't one full of joyful abandon, but one which contained a ring of recklessness, a recklessness that had haunted them all since they had buried the other half of his son.

"Has he been drinking again?" It wasn't fair to ask, he knew George had moved beyond their suspicions long ago, but he couldn't help worrying. Opening up a new branch of Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes was bound to bring up a lot of old memories, combined with the stress of the opening in general, was a mix that left Arthur feeling uneasy.

"Willium would know, I 'ave not seen zim. Ee comes by the 'ouse to visit with Victorie and Dominique at times, but I 'ave not smelled the firewhiskey. It 'as been a stressful time, but Ronald 'as been keeping an eye." She paused and gave him a critical look. "'ow about you, are you alright, Arthur?"

Smiling to reassure the young woman, who he had grown fond of over the years, he replied, "Right as rain."

"Merlin's soggy-balls! Look what the kneezel dragged in!" George's shout was very effective of gaining the attention of the whole room.

"It's nice to see you too, George," was Hermione's amused reply. As Arthur watched George dash across the room and engulf his estranged adoptive daughter in a hug.

Harry stepped in after a moment to ease the redhead off the unstable brunette, balancing herself on crutches. His efforts were thwarted by another shriek and body colliding into the woman.

"Auntie Hermione!" was Teddy's enthusiastic greeting.

Another small form darted forward. "Miss Hermione!" squealed Victorie.

"She made eet." Fleur grabbed his arm as they began to make their way through the crowd of journalists, American Ministry employees, and other local shop owners.

Ron, who had surprisingly proved to be quite a savvy businessman, had arranged the Grand Opening Party of the new WWW Salem location to follow the first day of business on Black Friday following the American Turkey Day. The party was huge and had garnered a lot of publicity on both sides of the pond with the list of attendees, who naturally included quite a bit of the old crowd from his children's Hogwarts years.

The big family-friend event had turned into more of a who's who of the British wizarding world, and the big names of the American wizarding community wanted to be there. It didn't hurt that WWW Diagon Alley was one of the most profitable new businesses of the past thirty years, and the enterprise had plans to open three more branches in the next five years - a very good investment to get involved in.

By the time they managed to maneuver through the guests several more members of the family had managed to mob the woman.

"Oh, 'ermione eet is wonderful to see you. You must find ze time to visit ze chateau, ma mère and mon père insist that you make it this year for Christmas."

"It's lovely to see you too, Fleur." The women embraced. "Tell your parents that I'll try my best to get out there this year. Right now though, I don't know what my schedule will be like."

"I do not like zis job of yours. We 'ave not seen you since you moved to ze States. At least when you worked in Cairo you were closer and could meet up on ze Continent," Fleur said choking up, not letting go of the other woman.

Hermione's tone remained comforting, but with a hint of steel underneath. "I will try to visit more. I'm sorry I've been so neglectful lately, you know how swept up I can get in a new project, and my job it's amazing it's…I can't really describe it…I can never repay your family's kindness in taking me in-"

"You are family," cut off Fleur.

It still amazed Arthur, the compassion his daughter-in-law had shown toward Hermione all those years ago, when they were still relative strangers. When Hermione first had moved to France for her education, it had been Fleur who had, without being asked, contacted her family to help keep an eye on the young woman. With that single act she had firmly established herself as being a true member of the Weasley family despite their rocky start. The Delacour's had ended up practically adopting the girl as well, tying the two families together beyond their in-law status to one of real friendship.

Finally released Arthur took the opportunity to give her another hug. "And how is my favorite bookworm?"

"As well as can be expected. It's good to see you Arthur." Stepping back he examined the girl.

She looked tired.

She hid it well, but Arthur could see the strain in her eyes, the sadness lingering behind the happy front. It was an all too familiar sight for the former-witch who in many ways was one of the worst casualties of the war.

"Oh, my dear it's fantastic to see that you could make it!" Molly grabbed the woman. "But look at you! What did you do this time? I don't know how you manage to find more trouble at a desk job than you could as an Auror. It's like you're trying to make up for your school years when the boys were always in the hospital wind nursing one injury or another." Before Hermione could try to form a reply Molly continued. "You're all skin and bones. It's worse than when you were at university and living off those Muggle instant meal things. My dear you must remember to-"

"Molly-coddle let's give Hermione a moment to finish greeting everyone before you start scolding her."

Hermione, always the quick girl, took the opportunity presented to change the subject. "Molly, it's great to see you. Thank you so much for that treacle tart recipe, it was a real hit last night at dinner. Clare, my team leader's wife, was raving about it and Harry, being Harry, probably ate about half the pan himself."

Arthur hid his smile as the whole family burst out laughing at the key words, treacle tart. It was an old joke involving said treacle tart and his son-in-law when Ginny had been pregnant with James. He could have told the boy never to underestimate the cravings of your pregnant wife.

The conversation flowed and ebbed as the night progressed and Arthur watched his family. They mingled, laughed with friends, haggled over business deals, waved for the press and were genuinely happy. The only off-note was his heart's daughter, who seemed to shy away from conversation unless asked a direct question and even then tended to keep her answers short. The only time she truly was engaged was when asked about her new job despite the disregard most seemed to have in it.

The night progressed and when the time came for the parents to hustle the kids off to bed, and those who would being staying up later began to leave to pursue more adult fun while the night was still young, he found the opportunity to approach her.

She was standing in an alcove when he found her, watching those in the room with wariness.

"You know they mean well. We all do really," he spoke.

The corner of her mouth lifted, but the smile didn't reach her eyes. "It doesn't get any easier, being here."

He appreciated the truth, even if it hurt. "Why don't you tell me a bit about this job of yours again?"

Hermione gave a huff of exasperation. "You're not going to berate me for the choices I've made in my life like everyone else seems to want to do."

Arthur wasn't offended by her tone.

He could understand her frustration at her friends' nagging, he had faced similar discouragement when he had started his career. "Hermione, you are a brilliant young woman and I trust your judgment. I'm not blinded to the fact that you were never really challenged or appreciated by your peers when you were a teenager, that you had different interests that were never appreciated by Harry or Ron. What happened to you, as horrible as it was, I think gave you the freedom to grow and not be held back."

"I don't see-"

He grabbed her hand, interrupting her. "Hermione, I don't know what you do, and even if you could talk about it I probably wouldn't understand, but it makes you happy in a way we can't anymore…" He grew contemplative. "I see what your generation has accomplished so far since the end of the war and even though things are different, too many things have stayed the same."

Her expression was confused and cautious as she studied him. "Arthur, what are you trying to say?"

The war had changed everyone and he was no different.

It had taken Arthur awhile to see it and even longer to believe it, but the problems behind the war, the prejudices, were not going away despite the campaign Hermione had unknowingly started. They were just changing; he was in fact a prime example of the new prejudicial pureblood.

One who was just so accepting of Muggleborns and Muggles in wizarding society couldn't help be amused whenever they insisted on accomplishing anything without magic or wanted to live in the Muggle world because wizarding society was obviously a better choice. Magic was simply the better solution to anything, although the way Muggles had found ways around it was fascinating. Never mind the fact that Muggle stiches had saved his life years ago, or that Hermione herself had once shown him a mobile phelephone to communicate large distances anywhere faster than anything in the wizarding world.

The point had finally been driven home when he had gone to liaison with Deputy-Headmistress Sprout to visit a new Muggleborn student early that year. The boy, Rory-something, had one eye of a striking green and the other the most intense violet Arthur had ever seen. At first he had assumed the boy was a Metamagus, but the parents had quickly corrected him. Rory had been blinded as a child in one eye, but had an optical transplant two years earlier, a procedure unheard of in the wizarding world as illustrated by Mad-Eye's strange device.

The Muggle world was the best place for Hermione to be; the wizarding one would have destroyed her given enough time.

"Nothing to worry over, my dear, just an old man's ramblings."

Friday 8:37pm Relative Mountain Time Colorado Springs, Colorado

It surprised Sam how comfortable she was sitting over the remains of the meal Orlin had prepared, continuing to converse with the strange alien as she had been for the last several hours. After she had turned away the Colonel and Teal'c and put away the pizza she had been ready just to hit the sack, but had reluctantly been talked into at least trying some of the meal first.

That first bite had shown that Orlin certainly knew how to cook, or that he was amazingly just like any other male she knew and had discovered the joy of TV and had inadvertently discovered the Foodnetwork. Deciding not to dwell on that though Sam focused back on the conversation at hand.

"I don't know where the rest of my kind are," he explained.

That shocked her, but then again his race liked to be so enigmatic she should have expected it. "Well, believe it or not, we met one of them. Her name was Oma Desala."

"Really. Never heard of her," Orlin replied after a moment's thought.

"She could do the same glowy kind of things that you can and she controlled the forces of nature," trying to see if it jogged his memory.

He shrugged. "Yeah, that's easy. At least it used to be."

"Well she lived on a planet called Kheb and she helped people ascend to a higher plane of existence," explained Sam, taking another bite of the delicious cheesecake and trying not to wonder where he had acquired the cream cheese, she didn't remember buying any when she was shopping the other day.

"That's why I've never heard of her. She was probably banished, like me," Orlin reasoned.

"What for?"

His voice was solemn, remembering. "Breaking one of the most sacred rules of our kind. Do not accelerate the natural ascension process of those beneath." He sounded like he was quoting from a textbook. "The humans of Velona were under attack from the Goa'uld. I was prohibited from interfering, but I couldn't just watch them die."

It clicked. "You told them how to build the weapon." It would explain why the technology was way beyond what the civilization on PX-636 should have been capable of.

"Communicated the knowledge, yes. They saved themselves."

"But not for long," her voice tinged with regret at the loss of life.

"No."

Not feeling hunger anymore she put down the fork. "Well, you were right to try."

"You're wrong," was Orlin's quick objection. "It was a horrible mistake. Shortly after they used the weapon to defend themselves, they started to plan the conquest of other planets using the technology that I gave them."

Responding to the pain in his voice Sam reached across the table to grab his hand. "So what happened?"

"The others," was his ominous reply.

"The others of your kind destroyed the planet?" The confusion was clear in her voice, the action just didn't seem that logical. "Well, they interfered too, isn't that breaking their own rule?"

Orlin shook his head. "As a collective, they decided it was necessary to prevent a disaster that I was responsible for. I was forced to live on Velona after that as my punishment."

"You couldn't have known," she tried to console.

"That's why the rule exists."

Sam decided to change the subject. "So…What now?"

"I'm human." He smiled. "Mortal, like you. I can never go back to the way I was without the others."

"Why would you do this?" To cover her confusion Sam began to pick up the dishes to take to the kitchen.

Orlin grabbed his own plate and followed her. "I did it as much for myself as for you."

In a van down the street two men sat watching the monitors as they recorded the movements in the house.

The static distortion of the feedback echoed in the small space holding their attention, as the previously identified Orlin's voice filtered through the speaker. "If nothing develops between us, I'll accept it. I just couldn't go on any other way. I just had to know."


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16 Saturday, part 1

Saturday 5:12am London, England

Very carefully Jeff shifted his weight from one leg to the other in an effort to displace the pins and needles shooting up his feet from standing still for so long. It was almost time.

His team had been slowly maneuvering into position for the last hour aware of the fact that they had to be extra careful to avoid any collateral damage, the extreme caution due to their suspect having sequestered himself in a Muggle council estate filled with families. Every effort had gone into planning the raid to minimize the danger to the other occupants.

The streetlight lent just enough light to allow Jeff to look at his watch. Eight minutes to go.

The decision had been made to attack before dawn to make sure the buyer would be disorientated and to maintain the advantage of the dark. It was also the best time to avoid the notice of the Muggles in the area before they began to stir and leave for their day jobs. It also worked to their advantage that it wasn't a weekday and any sane child in the building would be sleeping in.

He glanced down again, six minutes to go.

The wind chose that moment to pick up, whipping past him, funneled down the alley he was hiding in and almost knocking him over. Pulling his coat closer Jeff was thankful that his sister was good at tailoring charms and had found the time to go through his whole wardrobe, when she wasn't barging into his flat to clean and trying to set him up with another of her friends from work.

Was it really so bad that he wanted to enjoy life for a bit before settling down?

In the distance he could hear the hum of traffic and a stray cat screeching a block or so away.

Four minutes.

Three.

The anti-Apparition wards went up with two minutes to go.

At one minute he strolled out of his place and took the stairs two at a time passing a couple of Aurors dressed as a pair of nicotine-addicts out for a morning fix. Stopping in front of the flat he was met by his partner who gave him a nod.

Time was up.

At the doorway he used alohamora to open the lock as the smokers cast silencing charms all around the corridor. The door slowly opened and they sprang into action. Marching through the entry into the living room the four spread out in a search pattern, with nothing found they proceeded to the backroom.

Silent signals and they burst through the door. The occupant jack-knifed up at their entrance, but before he even had time to grab his wand he was bound and gagged. Bentley grabbed the suspect and portkeyed them out to a Ministry holding cell as Gretchen summoned backup which was waiting just outside of the fire-escape while Higgins guarded their rear in case of a trap.

Once the backup arrived a quick search of the residence was conducted.

Not even a footprint was left in the vacant flat ten minutes later.

Saturday 9:56am Mountain Time, Cheyenne Mountain, Colorado

"One week should be more than enough time to run the proper pre-test simulation," Colonel Rhynolds said in conclusion to his report on the progress of adapting the naquada reactor to the weapon.

Sam felt an icy dread spread over her at his words. This was bad, if what Orlin said was true his people wouldn't allow the weapon to be activated and what that meant for Earth was anyone's guess. "Sirs, if I may. I think we should wait."

"You think we should wait?" parroted Colonel Simmons. "Major, you're the one who figured out how to use the naquada reactor to power this device." He didn't scoff at her, but Sam could tell by his tone that Simmons wasn't inclined to listen to her.

"Because General Hammond ordered me to. And if you read my recommendations, you'll see I also said it's extremely dangerous," pressed Sam, hoping to talk some sense into the desk-jockey the brass had fostered on them.

"Well I did read your recommendation and the Pentagon feels the risks are worth the reward," assured the colonel, dismissing her warning like a true politician.

Perhaps in response to her murderous expression Rhynolds decided to step in and try to win her over. "Going through the Stargate is extremely dangerous and you do that everyday."

"I agree with Sam, we don't know enough about what happened on that planet yet." It was childish, but she felt like punching the air as Daniel backed her up. She was glad to see that someone was in her corner and not treating her like a hysterical female, a problem she had been struggling with since her fainting episode earlier that week.

Colonel Simmons' face became stony and his back stiffened at the scientist's words. "Need I remind you, Dr. Jackson, of the dangers that we're trying to defend Earth against?"

"Oh, could you? Go slowly." Daniel's tone dripping in sarcasm, it seemed Jack had been rubbing off on the archeologist over the years.

Seeing the determined look on Colonel Simmons, Colonel Rhynolds and even General Hammond's faces she scrambled to think of something. Finally she just blurted the first think that came to mind. "General, I believe that using the device caused an atmospheric weather anomaly big enough to destroy the civilization on 636."

"You do?" asked a confused Daniel.

Sam refused to feel guilty for lying. It's not like it wasn't true, to a degree. The use of the device had caused the Ancients to create a cataclysmic event to wipeout the inhabitants of 636.

"That wasn't in your report." Simmons was skeptical.

Hammond's tone was more reasonable. "Do you have any evidence, major?"

"Not exactly," she hedged, "but I think that we need to perform a proper forensic environmental analysis."

"We're going to. After the first test firing of the weapon, which is when we'll be able to gather the most accurate information," Rhynolds said, once again trying to be the voice of reason.

His helpful nature was starting to grate on her nerves. "Not if you're dead."

"There is nothing to show-"

Hammond cut him off. "Major, you have two weeks to bring in any relevant evidence. If you can present a good reason to stop the test, I will. Dismissed."

After SG-1 and Colonel Rhynolds' departure Simmons approached General Hammond. "General, need I remind you, that ultimately the decision rests with the Pentagon?"

Hammond gave him a cool look. "Colonel, there's a red phone in my office that only takes calls from one man. The last time I checked, he's the boss of your boss. Or do I need to remind you?"

Hiding his scowl Simmons left the conference room and made his way back up to the surface. As he drove his car out through the security checkpoint he flipped open his cell.

Not waiting for an answer he spoke. "Send me a situation report from the surveillance team in place."

Pinching the bridge of her nose Hermione shut her eyes, fighting off the beginnings of a headache. It had been a stressful week so far with the mess her last mission had been, her worry about both the Potters and Sam's alien visitor, it was beginning to get to her.

Picking up the text she had been studying Hermione once again concentrated on the symbols etched into an archway of a cathedral that was pictured in the volume. They looked just about right.

Technically she was still on leave and shouldn't be on base, but Harry's little problem had forced her to make a trip up to the mountain for references she no longer had in the flat. The runes were not the standard Celtic or Norse alphabet she had learned at Hogwarts but an amalgamation of the two.

The image Harry had given her to study appeared to be a torque, not just a piece of curved metal as her friend had thought. Therefore it was meant to be worn; to what end she didn't know. The metal was gold and it was not rendered in the common style of a ribbon torque, but as a hammered plate bent to fit around an individual's neck.

The runes contained letters from both the Anglo-Saxon Futhorc and the Danish Younger Futhark alphabets. The best she could come up with was that the creator lived in a region of Britain that had at some point encountered Nordic invaders. Not that helpful granted, but it had her looking in the correct region to find written samples of similar creative combinations.

She needed to find the correct area to compare the local dialect and time period to find the correct context of the words. As it was right now the translation didn't make sense. Her hope was that the tiwaz rune, an upward pointed arrow, had a unique variant she had not previously seen of having not just two additional upward strokes coming off of the center line, but three.

Squinting her eyes she could just about make out a similar symbol in the photo. The writing was hidden in the border around a stone relief, depicting a battle with a female warrior in the lead. It was a recording of what most scholars assumed to be the Burning of Londinium led by Queen Boudicca against the Roman hoard in 61 AD. An unusual image to have in a cathedral, but which made sense since the descendants of the scattered Iceni tribe had migrated into The Fen shortly thereafter.

The previously Catholic abbey in the cathedral city of Ely resided in an area that had experienced Danish raiders in 870 AD who destroyed the first abbey that was then rebuilt in 970 followed by a cathedral which started in 1083, which fit.

Turning a page the photograph of the carving was blown-up focusing on Queen Boudicca's face and a beautifully rendered torque around the woman's neck.

A torque very similar to the one in the carving.

Not the same, but very similar with distinct differences, most likely later attempts at reproducing this torque.

Getting up from the chair Hermione began to pluck books off the shelves that she would need to explore this new avenue of thought with some old magical tomes she had back at the flat.

"HermioneGranger." Startled she spun around barely managing to catch the edge of the table as the movement threw her off balance.

Seeing the Jaffa standing in the doorway she let out a breath. "Teal'c, it's you."

His eyebrow rose in what she had learned was amusement. "Indeed."

Fighting off the urge to blush in embarrassment Hermione broke eye contact and busied herself with packing. "Sorry. I was a little distracted, and well…what brought you by?" she said in an effort to change the subject.

"Are you not still on leave, HermioneGranger?"

Putting the last book into her bag she nodded. "I am, I was just stopping by to pick up some books I need for a project for a friend."

Before she could swing the book bag over her shoulder Teal'c took the object in question. "I believe DoctorFraiser expressed that you should be taking it easy."

She couldn't help but scowl at the reminder. "That she did, but I am perfectly cap-" She stopped herself at the look on the Jaffa's face. "Alright, fine. Fine. I'm leaving anyway, you can escort me topside."

Grabbing her crutches Hermione turned to follow the sonic warrior out of her lab, but he didn't move. Perplexed, she repeated her earlier query. "What are you doing down here anyways?" Her lab was a bit out of the way of his usual haunts.

"LieutenantLewis mentioned he brought you in. I completed a study of the religious text you left me to look over." He tilted his head to gesture at the small stack she hadn't noticed sitting on one of the shelves near the door. A couple volumes of the Tripitaka was sitting on top, or Pali Canon, a collection of Buddhist teachings first recorded in the third century BC; Kojiki, the oldest known chronicle of the myths of Japan that form a core of Shinto practices, and A Collection of Tribal Folklore from the Pacific Northwest: Cowichan/Halkomelem.

"Did you enjoy them?"

"Indeed. Some of the names I am familiar with," Teal'c replied.

Hermione's interest was peaked. "Really? I wasn't sure to what extent actual Gou'ald might have influenced the stories. We really have only encountered System Lords that make up a part of the pantheon of deities of ancient Egyptian beliefs." Thinking about the texts she had let him borrow she wondered which ones had caught his attention.

"Most were unfamiliar," he confirmed. "As were the faiths described. During my time on Earth I have not come across many of the practices that were written about."

She smiled. "That's because I choose to give you texts on some of the lesser known religions which are practiced in this part of the world."

"Your reason HermioneGranger?" he asked, his tone of polite interest.

She took a moment to collect her thoughts before responding. "Teal'c, you've been on Earth long enough, had enough encounters with the NID to know that humans don't always act rationally."

"This is true. The Tauri remain a mystery in many of their ways."

"Well, part of that has to do with the size of the population. So much of the history of this planet has to deal with war. War between one population group or another because of a lack of resources or different ideologies that are deemed to be a threat to our own. We never had a common enemy to unite us, make us look beyond our differences to see how alike we truly are." Hermione tried not to get upset.

It was hard not to see the horrible reality of what the human race was capable of when examining history. Trying to explain the reasons that people did what they did to an alien, without making them seem petty, was difficult. At the same time Hermione knew that some wars needed to be fought, that some beliefs were worth fighting for.

Setting down the crutches she slid back into her seat. "It's like when I first asked you about the Free Jaffa. How so many different groups could work together and overcome their different upbringings to fight. You said it yourself that each group brought different experiences and strengths to your fight. No one had it a hundred percent right, but no one was a hundred percent wrong either."

"There is truth in every path toward the divine," summarized the Jaffa.

She was pleased that he had understood. "Exactly. I believe that whatever path you choose will be the right one for you. It would be wrong not to let you find which path that is. I gave you books on religions that would not be familiar to the majority of people around here because I don't want to influence you on a path that while is right for some might not be what is best for you."

"Religion is not a topic that I have heard much discussion of between personnel on base."

"It wouldn't be. The United States government holds that the functioning of the state should be separated from an individual's personal faith," she explained.

A slight shift of his brow told Hermione that what she had said confused the Jaffa. "But does a person not carry with them the teachings and practices of their faith always?"

"That is true." How to explain this? "It goes back to what I said earlier about fighting over different ideologies which may seem to threaten your own. There are literally dozens of religions in the United States. If the government seemed to be advocating one over another…" She trailed off trying to come up with an example. "Just think of it this way: if everyone on base was, I don't know, Muslim, except for General Hammond and Colonel Carter. There is a practice in that religion where the individuals fast for a month during the day. Obviously that would hinder the operational readiness of the whole command so General Hammond doesn't allow the practice to be observed while on duty. Now say Colonel Carter on the other hand is a Buddhist and cannot eat meat and General Hammond arranges it so she can have special MIRs without meat in them which still provide enough protein in them so that she can perform her duties."

"I see what you are trying to say." There was silence for a moment as he absorbed what she said.

"When I gave you the books on Buddhism, Shintoism and American Indian folklore, I was hoping to provide you with a different perspective than that of the predominantly Judeo-Christian background of the base community." Standing up she grabbed a couple books off a shelf above the desk to hand to him. "If you want to know more about those beliefs, this is the Old Testament the corner stone of three of Earth's largest faiths, and this is a book about European history from the Middle Ages through the Reformation, to give you an idea of why I was reluctant to start you with this."

Teal'c took the offered books. "You were on your way out."

"Yes, but if you have any questions feel free to ask. I may not be an expert on the exploration for enlightenment, but I know a bit about trying to find understanding in the face of uncertainty. About being lied to and used…" She didn't finish, not sure if she was revealing too much as she made her way out the door.

Teal'c fell into place beside her. "Your help has been most appreciated HermioneGranger. I was most intrigued by the idea of reincarnation, it is not a concept I am familiar with."

"The idea of reincarnation is common in Hinduism, which was the predominate religion in the area the Buddha lived in during his life. It is the concept that the journey you take in life, the impact it leaves on your soul with your every act and deed…"

"Who is a big-boy? Who is a big-boy?" Ginny cooed at a giggling James as she bounced him in her arms. "You are the big-boy. You are. Yes, you are. Harry, grab the camera."

"Gin, you know that he hates it-"

Keeping a smile in place Ginny made her position known to her husband. "Isn't daddy silly, Jamie-poo? He doesn't think that mummy wants some pictures of her handsome little man. That mummy wants to see her big-boy looking so grown up in his adorable outfit, that his Auntie 'Mione got for him. Yes, she does, oh yes she does." She directed the words at the toddler in her arms as she took her position at the front of the line.

Harry gave a sigh that she chose to ignore and instead fixed the cap on the toddler's head. She had been a bit confused about the odd Muggle outfit at first, but had promptly fallen in love the minute she had seen James in the costume and knew that Hermione's idea was brilliant.

Since their friend had left that morning to head into the office for a book to help her ridiculous husband and his case, she had taken the initiative of dragging Harry off to take part in the Muggle American tradition Hermione had told her all about.

When the attendant finally signaled that it was their turn Ginny excitedly stepped forward and up the steps. She had been carefully observing the reactions of the other parents with their children and had come up with the best plan to make sure James didn't create a fuss. Still cooing at the boy she took a seat in the lap of the big man clad in a red Santa suit, obviously startling the man, and settled James in her own lap.

Harry scowled. "Ginny, what are you doing?"

She ignored him. "Aren't you a good-boy? Now wave to daddy. Daddy wants to see that big-smile. Quick Harry."

He gave no move to comply with her request. "Jamie, look at daddy. Daddy is being so silly, he doesn't want mummy to have her picture taken. He doesn't want mummy to have her Christmas present, does that seem fair? Maybe daddy doesn't want his present." James thankfully continued to giggle, but she knew it wouldn't last. It was time for the big-hex. "Maybe daddy wants to sleep on Auntie 'Mione's couch. Does daddy want to sleep-"

She heard the camera go off and looked up as several more were taken in quick succession.

James started to fuss just as Harry finished and she stood up bouncing him. "There we are, there we are. It's all over mummy got her picture of Santa with his little-elf and daddy still gets to sleep in the bedroom. Everyone's happy."


End file.
